Forever Family
by hiraikoneko
Summary: BEING REWRITTEN! SO, SO SORRY!
1. Prologue

_**So, I've decided to write another Naruto fanfic after the first few shrivelled up and died on me...**_

_**Anyway, I own nothing but my OCs, the rest belongs to Masashi Kishimoto~!**_

* * *

**Prologue **

**(Himawari's POV)**

I was so tired. She always cried. Two and a alf years and my poor baby still awoke every night and wept for reasons she could not even understand yet.

As I sat across from my good friend Mikoto and my brother in law, I could hear her clumsy little feet making their way towards me. My little Akiko stumbled in. She was so small. Just a delicate little thing. I blamed myself and her father for it.

Standing up, I scooped my daughter up in my arms, quietly soothing her as she cried and muttered terrified words in my ear. She was a smart little thing, although it was to be expected, and she picked up the language when she was very young.

"Why? Why he do it?"

Feeling eyes on me, I looked over my shoulder. Mikoto looked on in adoration, but concern was clear on her face as well. She loved my daughter just as much as I did. Fugaku on the other hand looked quite unamused. He was annoyed.

I tried not to show my dislike for the man. I had never liked him. Even when we were academy students I still thought his ego was too much for him. I was just glad I hadn't been in the same class as him for most of it. We hadn't been in the same room until a month or so before the graduation exam.

The toddler in my arms recaptured my attention as she nuzzled into my shoulder and gripped me tightly. She continued babbling, but everyone could hear her words even as they faded in and out of audibility.

"Ita'...why Ita'...bloo...stop. Ita' stop..."

"Shush." I cooed to her, rocking the rambling toddler to sleep, "It was just another dream...go to sleep Akiko."

After a few minutes of this, she slowly faded back to sleep.

I turned to the people in the room and became serious. I was hear for a reason, besides letting Akiko-chan play with Sasuke-kun.

"Fugaku-san, Mikoto-san...would you do us the honour of being Akiko's god-parents? I would understand if you said no."

Mikoto stared at me in pure delight. Her onyx eyes lit up and a rather un-Uchiha like grin found its way to her face. I could understand. She had two sons, but Mikoto had always wanted a daughter as well. She wanted someone she could be a girl with. She already did that with Akiko.

My little girl was nothin short of an angel, despite the nightmares. I was scared she would become traumatized in the end, but for now, she was always happy. In the morning, I knew she would give me a brilliant smile and giggle happily.

Mikoto took care of Akiko from time to time, and she knew just how good my daughter was. And the boys loved her just as much. She was the sister they never had, although she was close enough already. She was their cousin. But only by law.

It seemed like everyone knew that my little girl was not an Uchiha by blood. It was rather obvious, if the chocolate brown eyes and the orange hair were anything to go by. It certainly didn't help that I was blond and blue eyes, and most Uchiha were black eyes and black haired. It was clear she wasn't my late husband's daughter.

I watched Mikoto look hopefully at her husband. My brother in law tried to remain stern, but if there was one thing that could make him change his mind, it was when Mikoto looked so happy and hopeful about something.

Fugaku did not approve of me, or my daughter. I wasn't an Uchiha by blood, and neither was my little girl. It was only his reputation that stopped him from kicking us out. I knew that, but I hoped over time he would grow to love my daughter. She deserved only the best...and there was no way I could honestly say the Uchiha clan weren't the best at many things.

But Fugaku also had the clan to think about. While a small few knew me and got along with me, I knew a large portion would disapprove of him taking her in, should anything happen to me.

His eyes were flickering from me to Akiko and to his wife, who was giving him a pleading look even the Hokage himself would be hard pressed not to give into. I could see the gears working in his mind. Mikoto wanted my daughter, and my little one had promise. She was half Saisei after all. Her blood was good, and it almost always promised good results.

As much as I hated the thought, she would be valuable to the clan.

Finally, after a few tense minutes, Fugaku shifted his eyes away from all of us and nodded once. Mikoto all but squealed in delight, and I felt my own grin appear as I hugged my daughter just a little tighter. Relief flooded through me. This was good. She would be safe, and I wouldn't have to worry about her becoming an orphan, left in the orphanage as I had been when I was seven.

I noticed Mikoto's smile drop, "Himawari-san...why are you looking for god-parents for little Akiko?"

I took a calming breath, ready to tell the secret I had kept since my pregnancy with Akiko, "My health is failing me."

Mikoto looked at me in concern, but she remained quiet so I could continue speaking. So few people knew, most of them being the ones who accompanied on the mission that changed everything for her.

"I have at least another year...year and a half. I intend to have everything ready for Aki-chan...which is why I will let you back out of this decision after I explain a few things to you."

"Why would we back out?" Mikoto asked, "We'd love to take care of her."

I shook my head, feeling my yellow hair swaying from side to side, "No...You'll think about it. I want to tell you about her nightmares."

Closing my eyes, I began to speak, and hoped that she would forgive me for lying. It was to protect my clan's greatest secret, after all.

* * *

_**Please review and tell me what you think! This was just a spur-of-the-moment-had-way-too-much-time-on-my-hands-kinda-thing, but I hope to keep it alive!**_

_**Updated 10/01/2016**_


	2. 1:The Boy

** Chapter One: The Boy**

"Mama!"

Uchiha Akiko sat up in her bed, her brown eyes wide with terror. Images of her nightmare continued to play; giant snakes tearing through the village, and on the horizon, even larger beasts battled against one another. All around...people laid dead, and there was nothing the child could do to stop it.

Himawari walked into the room, picking up her daughter and softly comforted the girl. She rocked her daughter back and forth repeating the mantra she always had, ever since her daughter had first started having these nightmares. Since the first night of her life.

"It's just a dream. It's just a dream."

But to Akiko, it wasn't. Dreams were meant to be nice and sweet...those 'dreams' were nightmares.

It was early morning, so Himawari saw no point in trying to coax the three-year old in her arms to sleep.

Her daughter had always been smart. She would be smarter than her peers for many years, but someday, they'd catch up. She learnt to speak quite early, although the toddler still had the habit of babbling random gibberish...gibberish that formed a pattern. To an outsider, it would have seemed like little Akiko had her own made up language.

Himawari knew this was not the truth. It was not a language she created on her own.

The young woman walked into her dining room, placing Akiko in her highchair. After they were fed and dressed, the two headed out into town, Himawari holding her daughter's hand while the red haired girl stood on her already steady feet. In the past few months, her daughter's hair had darkened, and it almost hurt Himawari, knowing the orange in her hair would vanish in a few years, until her hair matched that of her father's.

* * *

Himawari had made it a habit of spoiling her daughter on the days when the nightmares continued to haunt her child through the day. Today was one of those days.

It pained the woman to see her daughter shaking in fear, her small hand gripping her mother's so hard it almost hurt. She used to talk to her daughter about the nightmares, but she knew she had to stop asking. There were somethings she was not permitted to know.

Himawari lead her daughter through the Uchiha compound, ignoring the way people stared at them. It wasn't Akiko's fault...or her own.

When Himawari had been a late teenager, she had gone on a mission that went bad. She had attempted to seduce a target...and she paid the price.

In the end, she was pregnant with her attacker's child. She never once thought about getting rid of the baby...through adoption, or any other means.

Himawari had once belonged to a relatively strong clan in Konoha, but their numbers had dwindled down until it was only her.

She had been pregnant when she realized she was in love with her long time squad member, Uchiha Toshiro. They had been in the same genin squad and always got promoted together. It wasn't long after they confessed to each other that they were married. While some people in the clan disapproved, Toshiro had always stood by his wife...but they hadn't been married long.

It was just after Akiko was born that the Kyuubi attacked and Toshiro was sent out to help fight off the nine-tailed fox In the end, he was killed. Himawari lost so many people on that day.

Himawari did her best not to think about it. Instead, she pulled her daughter along until they were far from the compound and walking among the civilians.

They found their favourite toy store where children could get anything from stuffed rabbits to fake kunai.

It never bothered Himawari that her daughter steered away from toys meant for shinobi children. Her daughter dealt with enough violence in her sleep. She hoped the girl would stay away from the shinobi life-style, but she already knew her daughter wouldn't stay away from it for long. Akiko had a purpose in this world, and Himawari knew she would not be able to interfere.

Her daughter paused in front of a shelf of stuffed animals. A distant smile crept across Akiko's face before she gently plucked a stuffy from the group.

Himawari almost gasped when she saw her daughter clinging to a stuffed fox. She shook it off smoothly, giving her daughter a smile, knowing that her daughter had found the fox cute...and it had nothing to do with the beast that killed Toshiro, Minato and Kushina.

* * *

As they left the toy store, Akiko seemed to vanish into thin air. Her mother paused, looking around for her little girl. Her daughter had always been fast. For a three year old.

"AKIKO!" Himawari called.

Her daughter hadn't gone that far at all. Instead, she had crossed the street where a park was. She didn't care about the park. She cared about the little boy who was sitting all by himself. He was her age and the girl knew kids their age shouldn't be alone.

There could be creepy people, even here in the village.

She had seen the boy before when she and her mother had strolled past the orphanage. This boy was an orphan. She wouldn't know what she would do without her Mama, so clearly the little boy wasn't happy either.

She looked at the boy, tilting her head. Maybe she and her Mama could keep him.

Her mother caught sight of her across the street and darted over to her, quickly picking up her daughter, "Akiko, don't worry me like that!"

Akiko only shrugged, as though that was an acceptable answer, before she pointed to the boy who sat on a swing all by himself. His blue eyes were sad as he stared at other children playing with their friends.

Himawari felt her heart stop. It was 'THAT' boy. Uzumaki Naruto. People in the village feared him, even some of the shinobi. It wasn't right though. She knew his parents, how could she not? She understood what Minato had done, and why. She knew the boy wasn't evil, but...

The very thought of the demon lurking inside his sealed stomach made her skin crawl.

Still, what alarmed her was the way her daughter seemed to be staring at him. It was like she recognized him. And even the look she had when she picked out the stuffed fox. Like she knew all about them. If she did though, that didn't explain to the young mother why her daughter wasn't so scared of the fox. Something was...off.

The blond woman wanted to know who and what her daughter had dreamed this time. Akiko seemed to always know who someone was. Even children her own age, like Sasuke and Itachi, Nara Shikamaru, Inuzuka Kiba, even Aburame Shino, and a person could hardly see the boy's face. He was a cutey, by the by.

Her daughter just...knew. She knew so much more than a child should. She spoke of the Third Shinobi war, even Kakashi's team mates and what happened to them. All of it, she found out from dreams. So, Himawari had to ask herself, just what did she know about Naruto? Did she know the secret?

"W-What is it Aki-chan?" Her mother asked, somewhat shaken by it all.

"Can we keep him?"

Her mother couldn't help but laugh, despite the strangeness of it all. "Akiko...you can't..._keep_ a person."

"But I want him to live with us!" Her daughter whined. Somewhere in it though, Himawari could pick up the hidden panic. Looking int the warm, wide brown eyes of her three year old, Himawari saw it.

Akiko NEEDED this boy to live with them. The boy NEEDED to live with them.

**Now.**

* * *

**_So, this is the first real chapter of the story...I hope you all enjoyed it. Please review, follow or favourite._**

**_UPDATED: 20/01/2015_**

**_UPDATED: 10/01/2016_**


	3. 2: Naruto

_**A great big thank-you goes out to Himeno Kazehito and kyuubi lover 98 for reviewing~!**_

_**I'd also like to thank everyone elso who favourited and followed this story!**_

* * *

**Chapter Two: Naruto**

(From Akiko's POV from now on)

My mama looked torn between letting me have the boy, and yelling 'NO'. Of course, my Mama had never yelled at me...but she looked scared. That was odd. Usually I was the one who was scared.

The boy didn't look scary. Did he? No. I thought he looked kinda...huggable. Like Kyo, my new Fox.

Well, I called him 'Kyo' because something told me that calling him 'Kyuubi-kun' would have scared Mama a lot more than just wanting to keep a boy. Not that I saw what was so bad about keeping a boy.

"Please, Mama, we need to take him in." I begged.

My mama still looked torn. I scowled at her, wiggling out of her arms and walking over to the boy. He was almost as small as me, but he was missing his chubbiness. Mama said it was healthy for little kids to be a little chubby.

"Hello." I said, grinning at the boy.

He flinched, looking at my with wide blue eyes. They were almost as pretty as Mama's...that was weird for a boy.

"H-Hi..." The boy said, looking everywhere but at me. His face was a little red.

"My name's Uchiha Akiko!" I grinned, before casting a gaze to my Mama who looked a little less torn. Leaning more to the logical, happy option; letting me keep the blond boy with whiskers.

"I'm...Uzumaki Naruto."

"Nice to meet you!" I giggled loudly, before grabbing his arm and tugging him towards my Mama, "This is my mama. She's the nicest person in the whole-wide-world."

Mama was forced to look Naruto in the eye, and I knew I had won. We were taking him home. She seemed to melt as she stared him in the eyes, muttering something sadly under her breath before she smiled at the boy.

"Hello, Akiko, who's your little friend?" Mama asked, even though I knew she had heard.

"This is Naruto!" I introduced cheerfully.

"Well, hello there, Naruto." Mama greeted, "Would you like to join us for lunch?"

Naruto looked around, as though he thought this was a trap. That wouldn't do at all. He was going to be my new brother, and I wanted him to trust me, just like Sasuke trusted Itachi!

Reluctantly, he nodded. I giggled in glee before grabbing his and my Mama's hands and pulling them with me down the street. There was this awesome ramen place down that way...Naruto liked ramen...I guessed. At least I thought I guessed. Sometimes it was hard to figure out where I got things. They just kinda 'pop' up in my head, ya know?

He looked like he liked ramen. I LOVED ramen. Mama enjoyed ramen. Sooooo, we'd have ramen.

It was decided.

"Ramen, ramen. Ramen~!" I said in a sing song voice, to notify my Mama as to where we were going.

Mama laughed softly, "Alright you two...After we have some ramen, we can go to the park and you two can play, alright?"

I nodded enthousiastically while Nauto nodded slowly, "Um...Akiko-chan? What's ramen?"

I was completely delighted to hear him call me Akiko-chan.. It got rid of any awkwardness there would have been if he called me anything else.

Soon, I'd see if I could get him to call me sister.

Another thought hit me after he spoke. What had been that last thing he said? He asked me, 'What's ramen?'...

...

My eyes widened for a moment before I grinned, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Ramen, my friend, is the food of Gods."

My mama let out a very unlady-like snort, covering her mouth with her hand, but it wasn't enough to hide her typical laugh, which was a loud 'DAHAHAHAHA!' kinda laugh. It meant she was really happy.

I was happy to see her wariness from before was gone. At least, I hoped it was.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Woah!" Naruto exclaimed, quickly slurping up his ramen. I was glad he liked it. That meant we could go have ramen twice as often~!

"Told ya so." I said, happily pushing away my already empty bowl. My Mama was on her third. Someday, I would be able to eat as much as her.

But for now...one bowl was good.

"So...Naruto..." I said, tilting my head at him, "Where's your parents? It's probably not a good idea for you to be all alone...there are creepy people."

I already knew he was an orphan...this just led to my idea.

He looked down at the table, "I don't have any..."

I grinned, "Then Naru-kun can live with us."

I said it like it was the simplest thing in the world. The people in the stand had been listening in the entire time, so I wasn't all that surprised when one lady dropped her chopsticks and the man cleaning the bowls looked up in surprise.

Mama seemed to have relaxed now that she knew Naruto. She agreed with me now. She had to.

Naruto stared at me. His jaw hung slightly open and his blue eyes were HUGE. My new brother really didn't believe me, did he? Well...He'd learn to trust me.

I giggled, "Well, Naruto? We could go to the Hokage Tower and speak to the Hokage about it...an' then, you can come to our house and live with us!"

Mama nodded behind me, snickering at Naruto's expression. Finally, he snapped out of it.

"R-REALLY?!"

"Yup." I closed my eyes and nodded cooly before opening them again and grabbing him by the arm, "TO THE HOKAGE TOWER!"

* * *

**_So...this was another pretty short chapter...I'm nearly positive they all will be short...this will hopefully mean I can update often~! _**

**_Please Review, Fav and Follow._**

**_Hearing (reading, really.) your feed-back helps me write!_**

**_UPDATED: 20/01/2015_**


	4. 3: Stealth

**Chapter Three: Stealth**

I was not happy. We had been sitting here for hours. The stu- the _DUMB_ secretary lady wouldn't let us see the old ma- _The Hokage_...

Apparently, we weren't important. Or more correctly, anything to do with Naru-kun. Of course, she didn't say that, but it was pretty obvious. Even to a three year old.

Not that I was much of a three year old. People said I acted way older.

I didn't really like it when they said that. After all...didn't old people get all shrivelled up and spotty...and hairy. And they had **huge** noses.

I didn't want to get old.

I liked being little.

Of course, they also said I looked too young to be three.

That really didn't make any sense. I acted too **old** to be three and I looked to **young** to be three...so what did that make me?

A prune-person in a baby-body?

**I did not like this!**

"Um...Aki-chan?" My mama said calmly, poking me in the forehead, as she often did with Ita' and Sasuke.

I looked up at her, my hands flying up to cover my forehead, "Yeah?"

"Why don't you take Naruto to that toy store? You two can go pick out some more toys to play with." Mama suggested, smiling as she handed me some money. Her tone changed as she spoke again, "And remember what I told you about people trying to rip you off."

We shared a bit of an evil smirk.

Mama didn't naturally trust people. Especially the civilians. They liked trying to rip people off all the time. I had seen Naru-kun a few times before, and he was always being picked on. It wasn't nice.

"C'mon Naru-kun." I smiled, pulling the boy after me. I knew the real reason Mama was sending us away.

She was going to get scary.

"Um...Aki-chan, I don't think they'll let us into the store...at least...not with me..." Naru-kun said, looking at his feet as we walked.

I snickered, "Don't worry about it Naru-kun. See this crest?"

I pointed to the back of my dark blue dress, where the Uchiha crest was sewn in. Naruto nodded.

"I'm an Uchiha. People treat us pretty well. But they don't really like Mama and I that much."

"Huh? Why not?"

"We don't look like the rest of them." I replied, "See...most people in my clan have dark hair and dark eyes, and they kinda stomp around with this pouty look on their faces after a certain age."

Naruto snickered as I showed him how some of my clan-mates walked.

"Even Ita-oniisan walks like that now. And he has these reaaaallly weird lines on his face like this," I used my fingers to draw the lines Itachi was getting the older he got. HE WAS SHRIVELLING UP ALREADY!

I heard someone cover a laugh from behind us. Spinning around, I saw none other than Itachi and Shisui.

My face went red and I stepped behind my soon to be brother. I smiled as cutely as I could at the two, "Oh...Hey Ita-oniisan...Shisui-niisan...nice to see you here...in public...where I'm safe..."

Naru-kun looked between me and the two boys in front of us. He took a step back, that I quickly copied so he didn't trip over me.

"Hello Aki-chan." Itachi greeted. He didn't look all that mad, but you had to be careful around some folk...'cause...you know...they're all...'Nin-nin'.

"Who's your friend, Aki-chan?" Shisui asked. I tried not to stare at him for too long. Lately, I'd been having more nightmares...sometimes he was in them. I didn't like it when Itachi and Shisui were there.

"Ah, this is Uzumaki Naruto!" I introduced cheerfully as I moved out from behind him, "Naruto, this is Itachi-oniisan and Shisui-niisan."

"H-Hi." Naru-kun said shyly. Ah, it just wouldn't do. Eventually, he'd learn that anyone I was good with was a good person. **Especially** Itachi-oniisan and Shisui-niisan.

"How come she respects you more?" Shisui asked Itachi after they greeted Naru-kun. I could tell they weren't comfortable around him.

I didn't get it. Was it the whisker-markings or something? Naru-kun was fabulous. No need to get all stiff. People really needed to get those brooms outta thei- _People needed to be nicer to Naru-kun._

"Where are you two going?" Itachi asked, his eyes were moving through the crowd, trying to find Mama.

"To the toy store. Mama told us to go buy some toys while she talked to the Hokage." I answered, hugging Kyo tighter, to show we were looking for toys.

"Ah...I take it Himawari-obasan was getting frustrated with the wait?" Itachi asked, while the three of us shared a knowing look. Itachi never treated me like a baby. It was kinda nice, but he was one of the people who said I acted too old to be three.

He was on the Prune-people side.

I nodded cheerfully, "Anyways, we should be going now. I wanna get there before the store closes."

"We'll take you." Itachi said.

I grumbled. Itachi was way too protective. We arrived at the toy store after a few more minutes of walking. Naruto seemed hesitant about entering, so I grabbed his wrist and yanked him into the store behind me.

_Tanaka's Toys_ was a large toystore with a very friendly feel to it. It felt like a nice, family owned store -which it was- with a polished wooden floor and a warm paint job.

Almost instantly, the man behind the counter was making his way towards us with a fake smile. I really didn't like fakers.

"Good morning Tanaka-san!" I greeted, as though he wasn't about to try something stupid on us.

"Ah...Good morning Akiko-chan...I'm sorry, but we're about to close for the day...You and your..._friend_ will have to leave."

I snorted, much like Mama, stepping forward so I was between him and Naruto. I crossed my arms and gave him a cold, dead-eyed glare.

I snarled just like Mama would have, "_Listen, _Tanaka-_san_," I jabbed a finger into his chest, since he had leaned in to speak to me, "Naru-kun and _I_ are here, with Ita-oniisan and Shisui-niisan, to buy some toys. That sign in the window says this store will be opened for another _hour._ Now...I really hope you aren't telling us to get out of here for some _stupid, biased_ reason...right Tanaka-san? Other wise my Mama would be highly displeased."

Tanaka-san shifted slightly in a nervous manner. I crossed my arms again.

I kinda felt like a spoilt little kid, but hey...Until I learnt to be kick as-_ butt._ I needed to use what ever power I had. AKA: Mama.

Behind me, I could hear Shisui-niisan speaking with Ita-oniisan. "Where the heck did she learn that?"

"Himawari-obasan. I've seen the lessons." Itachi replied quietly.

"Wow..." I heard Naru-kun say. I looked away from Tanaka-san to see him staring at all the toys. I sent another glare at Tanaka-san before I took off after my soon-to-be-brother.

"Naru-kun! Whaddya wanna get?" I asked as I came to walk beside him. Itachi and Shisui were looking at the toy kunai. They'd get it for Sasuke-nii. He was always getting stuck with those stu- _lame_ shinobi-children toys.

"I dunno..." He said, looking around at all the toys.

"I know!" I said cheerfully, "If we get a ball, we can play all sorts of games...like Soccer, and basketball and-"

"What's soccer and basketball?"

I giggled, "Don't worry Naru-nii. Aki-neechan will show you! Its lots of fun."

I felt three sets of eyes on my back. I turned to see Itachi, Shisui and Tanaka-san all staring at me as though I had grown an extra head.

I snickered before I went back to Naruto, "So...do you wanna be a ninja someday? 'Cause if you do, we could get some toy shurikan and kunai...that way, you'd be really awesome when its time for the academy..."

Naruto looked at me thoughtfully before he grinned. I must say, it was like I was staring at a living ray of sunshine. Naruto needed to smile like that all the time.

He looked warily at the other's in the store before he motioned for me to come closer. I leaned in and he whispered, "I'm going to become Hokage, just like Jiji."

I giggled not bothering to speak as quietly as him, "You'd make a great Hokage."

"Really?!" he asked loudly. I ggiggled again and nodded.

"C'mon, if you wanna be strong enough to be Hokage...we better start practicing now, right?"

Naruto nodded enthusiastically and we both ran for the ninja toys. We got one pack of kunai and another of shurikan, along with a ball. We took them to the counter for Tanaka-san to ring up.

I handed him the money, knowing he wasn't ripping us off. I was good enough at math to know how to add up my money.

It was a bit odd for someone my age, but my mama had drilled many things into my head as soon as she realized I was smart enough to handle them.

The four of us left the toy store. Ita-oniisan and Shisui-niisan had to head back home, so Naru-kun and I continued on out down towards the Hokage Tower.

I stopped Naru-kun just as we entered the building. "Now Naru-kun, today we will be working on our stealth. This is an important part of being a shinobi."

Naruto nodded with a determined look. I motioned for him to follow me quietly. I took off my sandles so I was walking with nothing but my socks. This reduced the noise I made with each step. Naruto copied me.

We padded almost silently towards the desk, where the secretary looked some what shaken. Mama had gotten her way.

Making sure we stayed out of the woman's sight, we stuck close to the walls. She was focused on her paper work, which helped greately.

I led Naru-kun down a hall and up a set of stairs. In front of us now was the Hokage's office. The door was HUUGE compared to me. But I wasn't trying to open the heavy wooden door. I looked up at the two ANBU guards stationed by the door.

I recognized them as Uchihas. I had spotted them entering and leaving the compound often enough to know it. I didn't get a lot of sleep. You would not believe how many people used rooftops more often than roads.

I waved cheerfully to them before putting an ear against the door. Naruto looked at the two nervously before he joined me.

"_-I want to adopt Naruto, I don't see what's so wrong about that._" Mama's voice was muffled slightly by the door, but I could hear her well enough.

"_Uchiha-san, it's not that simple...the Elders would assume it was a plot by your clan to-_"

"_Hokage-sama, I could give less of a damn what those old coots have to say or think. I have my reasons for wanted to take in the boy, but they aren't anything that would harm him. Honestly, I just want Akiko to have someone."_

_"Uch- Himawari. I can understand that but..."_

_"There is no but about it! I'm not leaving her alone in this world! She's my BABY! She needs someone to keep her company...At least Naruto can cheer her up, and I don't see how it would HARM him to have some sort of Parental care in his childhood."_

_"Have you even spoken to the boy?"_

_"I have. He's the cutest little boy I've ever met since Sasuke. That's another reason...he and Sasuke would be good together...Mikoto would love to take him in next year too..."_

_"Himawari...does your daughter even know yet?"_

_"Akiko- No...I haven't had the heart to tell her."_

I narrowed my eyes. This did not sound good. Why were they talking about me now? What happened to adopting Naru-kun?!

_"You'll have to...soon. There isn't much time left."_

_"I know but- She's been having trouble...she's had more nightmares...I don't want to cause her anymore unhappiness...not now..."_

_"Himawari, think of the unhappiness she'll have when you die next year and she'll have no idea why."_

It was right about then that my heart stopped beating. Naruto stared at me with wide blue eyes. I felt tears start flooding my eyes, but I stopped them. I glared coldly at the floor until the tears were gone.

I went back to listening.

"_I'll tell her. For now, can we just get back to Naruto-kun. Mikoto and I were friends with Kushina. She wanted her boy to be happy...Friends with Sasuke and Akiko...I want them to be together..all of them. Mikoto will take care of them...and Fugaku has already promised to take care of Akiko, no matter what the circumstances. He'll raise Naruto as well...You can make sure of that."_

_"To send Naruto into the main house of any clan would cause an uproar in their ranks..."_

_"My family will get over it. Just tell me, would it be any better if we just left that poor boy alone on the streets? The orphanage isn't taking care of him properly. If they were, we wouldn't have found a three year old wandering the streets by himself."_

The Hokage sighed, "_Fine...but I expect you to explain this to the Uchiha clan..._"

"_I will._"

I grabbed Naruto's hand and pulled him after me down the stairs. Once we were at the bottom, I put my shoes back on. We made a show of stomping happily up the stairs, just as Mama stepped out of the Hokage's office.

The two ANBU shared looks...which I guessed was pretty Nin-Nin, considering they were wearing those definitely-not-out-of-season-festival-masks. I kinda wanted one.

"What did...'Jiji' say?" I asked, copying Naru-kun's way of addressing the most powerful man in the village.

Mama grinned, "We're taking Naruto home."

Naru-kun and I high-fived each other. I gave him a large smile before ruffling his blond hair, "Welcome to the family Naruto-kun!"

"Hey!" Naruto yelled playfully, before he messed up my own red-orange hair. I pouted, trying to pull the long strands back into some form of order.

My hair looked completely red unless it was brought into the sun light. Then, you could see that there were strands of blond in it.

Mama took both of our hands and led us back to the compound. Things, I could tell, were about to get nastier than ever.

* * *

**_Thank you Himeno Kazehito for reviewing again!_**

**_I hope you all enjoy this chapter! I didn't really mean for it to be this long but hey...2 000 isn't THAAT bad. Coulda been like...4 000._**

**_Anyways~ Please review! _**

**_UPDATED: 20/01/2015_**


	5. 4: Nasty

**Chapter Four: Nasty**

It did. I felt Mama pull me and Naru-kun closer to her as she picked up her pace until we were practically running along side her.

My clan mates stopped to stare at us with narrowed eyes, intensified by the presence of Naru-kun. Once again, everyone seemed to hate him.

A man, who's name I didn't know, approached Mama, "What do you think you're doing, bringing that _thing_ in here? It's bad enough you kept the first one."

My Mama met his gaze with a cool look on her face, she smiled, "Well, I'm bringing him home. He needs a nice place to stay."

Then, she dropped the smile and seemed to flicker forward until she was standing directly in front of him, _"And if you ever say another word about my little girl...I will personally paint this compound in. Your. Blood."_

"IT CAN'T STAY HERE!" Someone shouted, completely missing the blunt threat my Mama gave the man before them. Adults sure were stupid.

"My _SON_ can stay where ever the hell I want him to stay."

I took Naru-kun's hand and pulled him along. Mama was about to get scary again, "C'mon Naru-kun...I'll show you our home. You'll have to share a room with me for now...until we can get you your own bed..."

I reached into the pocket of me dress, pulling out a small smoke bomb my Mama gave me for times like this. We got stopped a lot.

I pulled Naruto after me. People tried to grab us, but I was a master at weaving through their hands. I pulled Naruto after me before throwing down the smoke bomb. People coughed on the smoke, moving away in surprise. Mama was sure to lace it with a number of bad smelling things. That way, any shinobi who relied on their sense of smell for tracking was pretty scre-_ I mean at a disadvantage._

Well...most ninja had strong senses of smell...so even if they weren't trackers, they still got kinda hurt.

I lead Naruto into an alley way. We went along until it ended. We passed Sasuke-nii's house, and I stopped, seeing Sasuke-nii playing in the yard- actually...he was trying to practice throwing kunai.

"SASUKE!" I called, pulling my brother along behind me.

Sasuke looked over at us and smiled to me, before looking towards Naruto in confusion. "Hey Aki-chan...who's that?"

"Ah!" I said happily, "This is my new brother. Uzumaki Naruto," I turned to Naruto, "This is my not-brother, Uchiha Sasuke."

A frown slipped across my face, and my heart clenched painfully. Sasuke-nii was my not-brother right now...but by next year...Mama would be...and Naru-kun and I would live with...

I tightened my hold on Naru-kun's hand.

I didn't react like a normal little kid...this was one of those moments when everyone was right...I was a Prune-Person in a little kid's body. I knew I should be crying...and clinging to Mama right now but...The pain was dim, as though it was unimportant. That was wrong though. Mama was the most important person in my world. She WAS my world...

"You got a brother? I thought they had to be babies first...That's what Itachi-oniisan said anyways..."

Naruto and I giggled, hiding all the negativity in my mind, "Mama just adopted Naru-kun. He's my brother now."

"Oh!" Sasuke nodded his dark eyes wide. He was a bit taller than me...which was annoying.

Naru-nii and I smiled brightly at him, before I brought myself back to focus, "Um...Sasuke...If any adults other than Mama come by looking for us...can you tell them Naru-nii and I went the other way?"

Sasuke looked at me nervously, "Did you get in trouble again?"

"No!" I said, a bit loudly, shaking my head, "It's just the grown ups being stupid."

Sasuke nodded again. He totally got it. I was worried about getting older. Adults were always so dumb. They never saw what was right in front of them.

After quickly saying good-bye to Sasuke, I lead Naruto to our home. It was a small building with a pretty garden in the front. Mama often visited the Yamanaka flower shop when she bought lots of useful plants.

I wasn't allowed to eat any of the berries or seeds...and I knew which ones not to touch at all. Most of them were deadly, or pretty close.

The bedrooms were upstairs on the second floor, right beside each had a spare room that Mama used as an art studio. I knew it would be changed into Naru-nii's room...if we had the chance before...

* * *

As soon as my bed room door was closed, I let out the first few tears.

Naruto looked panicked, not knowning what to do. I patted the spot beside me on the bed. My brother sat beside me stiffly...but it was enough.

I tackled him, hugging him tightly. I tried not to cry...but it was hard. I knew I'd have to stop before Mama made it here. I couldn't lie to her face...and she would probably guess what it was that bothered me...she'd realize I had been listening in.

"Aki-chan...it's okay. You'll be okay..." Naru-kun said, although I knew he was feeling incredibly awkward. I tried to stop crying. There was no need for me to freak out my brother on his first day with us.

Eventually, I squashed the tears, reminding myself that Mama could die in a much worse way. From what I had understood in that conversation...she was sick. Otherwise, there would have been no way for her to predict her own death.

She could have died like the people in my dreams.

* * *

When Mama came home, Naru-kun and I were throwing our toy kunai. I had a better idea of what to do, since Ita-oniisan and Shisui-niichan had made me and Sasuke-nii practice all the time.

"No, don't throw it like that. Itachi-oniisan says you'll cut open your hand like that. You need to throw it like this." I positioned the kunai properly and threw it at the picture of a target we had drawn and taped to the wall.

The toy kunai flew straight and bounced off one of the inner rings of the target.

Naruto and I cheered when he managed to get it in the same ring not long after. High-fiving, we spun around hearing Mama giggled.

We turned to look at her, tilting our heads. She had a number of cuts and bruises. Her shirt had a few singes around the edges and her hair was noticably shorter.

"Mama!" I said, voice full of concern. Naruto and I ran up to her to make sure she was alright...although Naruto hung back slightly.

That would not do at all.

Mama wrapped her arms around me in a hug. We looked over to the third member of our family and motioned for him to join us in unison.

I was happy things weren't as bad as they could have been. I don't know what I'd have done if someone had really hurt her.

I'd probably have tried and failed to kill them. I was just a useless kid after all.

* * *

_**Ah, this had nothing to do with the story, but just today I went to my first anime convention at Anime North. It was AMAZING~! There were so many people...**_

_**Of course, I come from a school with only a couple hundred...**_

_**Anyways~!**_

_**Big thank you goes out to Himeno Kazehito for reviewing once again!**_

_**Please review and tell me what you think!**_

**UPDATED: 21/01/2015**


	6. 5: Mind Training

**Chapter Five: Mind Training**

Naruto and I did our best. He'd only been with us for three days, but they'd been the best days of my life. For the first time in my life, I had slept a full night without waking up screaming. I think it may have had something to do with the fact that I had my brother beside me now.

I was safe, curled up beside him at night. The feeling of someone else there helped. Mama had tried this...but it hadn't worked before. I'm not sure why.

It was on the forth night that I was hit with another nightmare. It was worse than all the others...as though the previous three nights' worth of nightmares had piled up into one.

_The land around me was flat and dead. There was nothing growing from the earth. What wasn't a flat expanse was scarred with signs of powerful jutsus. Deformed mounds of rocks...charred, cracked dirt and stone._

_All around me, bodies littered the ground...people in headbands I didn't recognize. Not from Suna, Iwa, Konoha, Kumo or Kiri. Not even Ame._

_The sky was dark and everything was silent around me. However, in the distance, I could hear the sounds of fighting. I didn't want to look closer, I tried not to. I was pulled towards the scene. A monster rose up into the sky like it was trying to reach the moon._

_There were more bodies all around. People lay as empty husks...drained of everything._

_The dream shifted, and I watched as a boy walked into his home, to find his father dead._

_Again the dream shifted. I saw people running across a battle field, fighting their family...all because of one man._

_Another shift brought me to the Uchiha compound. I wasn't there long, but I saw my family dead._

_I was outside the academy, seeing Naruto sitting on a swing alone. I came closer to him, but as I did, he changed. I reached out to him, but he fell off the swing, limp. He looked older than before, but it was him. Those pretty blue eyes were so blank-_

_Suddenly it was Mama I was staring at. I had never had a nightmare about Mama before._

It was enough to pull me out.

I let out a shuttering, desperate gasp for air as I sat up, pulling away from my brother. I rolled off the bed and sat on the floor. I shivered in fear, scratching at my arms, trying to distract myself with pain.

I slowly dragged myself to my feet and padded out of the room. I moved to the back door and stood out in our fenced in back yard. I plopped down under the tree in the center of the yard and closed my eyes.

I focused on the feeling of my chakra buzzing under my skin. I had never gotten used to the feeling. I knew I was supposed to not feel this...it shouldn't have bothered me at all...

But it didn't feel _right_.

I practiced pushing the chakra around through me limbs. Eventually, I picked up a leaf and placed it on my forehead.

I knew this was dangerous, and my reserves weren't very large...considering I was three.

It had taken me a while to get the right amount of chakra into the leaf, but now I had managed to make the leaf stick.

The chakra practice and meditation I did afterwards always helped...if I stopped thinking completely, there was no way for me to remember the nightmares.

Meditation would also help my chakra reserves. I thought maybe, if I started expanding them now, they would be even larger by the time I was old enough to become a genin.

Well...there was also the possibility of war. Mama had always told me about politics and she had decided I should always know Konoha's relationship with the other villages. Earth and Cloud hated our guts, and we were on rocky grounds with Suna...Mist was having enough troubles that they weren't much of a threat...

I mostly had nightmares of Suna...just a dead body or two wearing the Suna headband, laying in the streets of Konoha. Nothing overly bad- Oh who was a kidding!?

I needed help.

A lot of help.

I told Mama...but she said not to worry.

I never understood that though. Shouldn't she be worried when her three-year-old saw dead people every time she fell asleep?!

I let out a sigh, opening my eyes. There was no point in trying to meditate tonight. Nodding to myself, I went back inside and crawled into bed, curling up with my new brother.

Naruto let out a little grumble, before he opened his eyes slightly. I closed mine and moved even closer to him.

"Wha...? Aki..."

"I had a nightmare." I whispered, not looking up.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

I didn't, but there was no point in hiding it...I didn't want to have wasted his sleep.

"Everyone I care for died." I said quietly, "Mama...everyone in the clan...You."

My brother pulled my closer to him. I needed hugs more often, I decided then. It felt safe.

"Don't worry. I'm going to be Hokage someday...I can't die before then. You'll be stuck with me forever." He said. I giggled quietly. Talking to him settled my nerves.

"You're right." I said, "Good night Naru-kun."

"Good night Aki-chan."

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Mama!" I called, skipping into her room. My Mama looked up from her desk, quickly closing a MASSIVE scroll.

"Yes Akiko-chan, Naruto-kun?" She asked, looking at the two of us, smiling sweetly.

"Well...um..." Naru-kun stuttered, looking embarrassed. I snickered.

"Naru-kun and I wanna learn to be ninjas! Could you teach us?" I asked.

My Mama's lips twitched down at the corners for a moment, before she let out a sad sigh. Her eyes drifted shut for a moment and when they opened again, she had what I liked to call 'The World is Mine to Destroy' expression.

It was like determination, times infinity.

Suddenly, I found myself regretting asking her...but since she had the TWMD look on...I knew we were stuck.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

We stood in the garden, watching as Mama ran over some basics with us. We needed to focus on stretching. She said it was because we were so young.

We weren't able to do the hard-core flying kicks and stuff, but if we stretched often and stayed fit, we would be able to when we got older.

"Now, right now, all you two can do is stretch, memorize katas and keep yourselves active...however...If you were to focus on your book smarts now...it would give you more time in the future to train. When you get older, you'll be able to push yourselves more, and do more." Mama said.

Naru-kun did not look happy. I smiled sadly, shaking my head at him.

"What?" He whispered to me. I face-palmed before putting it more simply.

"We're little kids. We can only stretch right now. So, we'll be strengthening our minds first."

"Does this mean we have to read and stuff?"

I nodded, looking overly traumatized, "Alas, it is true!"

"What does 'Alas' mean?"

I face-palmed again before muttering to myself in my secret language, "**_This is going to be a pain in the ass._**"

Mama looked over to me, "Akiko, what have I told you about speaking in code?"

I looked away sheepishly, "Sorry Mama."

"Wah! You have your own code language?!" Naruto asked me loudly.

I nodded, feeling incredibly proud of myself, "Yep. I even have a written version of it."

"Did you name it yet?"

"Yeah. I call it 'Sammy'."

" 'Sammy'...? What does that mean?"

I frowned, looking troubled, "I don't know...it just comes up a lot when I'm thinking of what to say in code..."

"Oh...Could you teach me?" He asked, suddenly looking incredibly happy at the thought.

I grinned, "Yeah! When we go to the academy, we could totally keep people from listening in on our conversations!"

My Mama was chuckling by now, but she eventually called our attention, "Alright you two, lets do some stretches."

After we spent an entire HOUR stretching, Mama told us to play tag and hide and seek. Something told us it was more than just a game, now that we were going to follow the path of ninjas.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Alright...we'll started with reading. Now...Naruto-kun...how much have they taught you at the orphanage?" Mama asked my brother.

"They didn't really teach me anything...no one talked to me..." He frowned.

"Well, I guess we'll have to fix that, won't we?" Mama asked with a grin, placing her hand on his head.

Naruto and I nodded. Looking over at him, I could see his face was turning red, and there were little, ity-bity tears in his eyes.

Now that I thought about it, he looked a lot like Mama. He was lucky for that. I didn't look like either of them. I had red-orangish hair and brown eyes while Naruto and Mama both had blond hair and pretty blue eyes.

Mama pulled a small chalkboard out of the hallway closet. I don't know how it fit in there...but I bet there was a seal for that.

It was like it was bigger on the inside!

...

...

...

Somehow, that sentence felt way more important than it should have.

I watched as Mama started from the basics, just for Naru-kun. I didn't say a word about already knowing this.

Learning had always come easily...I understood writing pretty easily...but 'Sammy' was soooooo much easier for me to understand.

* * *

_**Here's another Update! A big thank you goes out to everyone who has reviewed, Favorited and Followed! **_

_**Please review and tell me what you think~!**_


	7. 6: Mikoto

**Chapter Six: Mikoto**

"Naruto, Akiko, it's time to visit Mikoto and Fugaku-san."

Naruto and I nodded, putting out plates away after eating our breakfast. We ran to our room to grab some clothes.

Naru-kun had been with us for two weeks now, and had decided he didn't want a separate room. I was fine with it. He had told me that he was always alone before we met him, and he didn't like it.

So, I had a roomie.

Mama had said he would have to get his own room eventually. It hurt because I knew he'd be getting his own room at Mikoto-sans house, and not here.

So would I.

Naruto grabbed his clothes and went to the bathroom to change, while I got changed in my room.

I pulled a dark blue sundress on, happily touching the crest Mama had added on, over my heart. I loved my clan. Even if they hated me...I loved my family.

I pulled on a pair of matching sandals and hurried out the room, quickly grabbing some toy kunai, knowing this would be a chance to practice with Sasuke-nii. I grabbed Kyo and Un-zipped his back, putting the kunai inside.

Mama liked to sew, so I had asked her to add a small pocket inside my toy fox so I could put stuff inside. He was like my own adorable purse...

Or in this instance, a kunai holder.

Naruto and I raced down stairs to the front door where Mama was waiting.

My brother now wore a dark blue t-shirt and white shorts, much like Sasuke-nii, but Mama had sown a tiny, orange swirl on the hem of his left leg. I was curious as to what it meant.

I had seen a few shinobi with the marking, but no one had ever said anything about it.

He also wore, much to mu amusement, a pair of goggles on his forehead.

We both held one of Mama's hands as she led us through the compound.

A few of the Uchiha gave us the stink-eye, which Naruto and I gladly returned.

With a final hop, skip and a great big jump, we landed on the Uchiha Clan Leader's home. Mama knocked and a few moments later, Mikoto answered the door.

"Hima-chan, Aki-chan!" Shegreeted before she looked down towards Naruto, "Hm? Who's this?"

From the way her shoulders tensed ever so slightly, she seemed to know exactly who he was. I tried not to get angry. Even Mikoto...

"Ah! This is my son, Uzumaki Naruto."

Mikoto's eyes seemed to light up and she looked at the boy with the friendliest smile I had ever seen since Naruto himself.

"Come on in." She said, still smiling. She and Mama had a silent conversation as they walked past each other.

"Mama, can Naru-kun and I play with Sasuke?" I asked, once I spotted the boy in the yard again. He always seemed to be out there.

Mama looked towards Mikoto-san before she nodded. I tugged Naruto along with me as we went outside again.

"Sasuke!" I called, waving.

My not-brother turned around and smiled when he saw us. He lowered the hand he had raised to throw a toy kunai and headed over to us.

"Aki-chan, Naruto!" Sasuke greeted.

"Our Mama said we could come play with you! Naruto-kun and I are going to be shinobi, right Naru-kun?"

"Yeah!" Naruto said, pumping his fist in the air, "I'm going to be Hokage, dattebayo!"

"Wow!" Sasuke said, "You're really that strong?"

That deflated Naru-kun pretty quickly, "Well...not exactly...but someday, everyone in this village is going to respect me! I'm going to be super strong."

"Well, don't expect me to laze around." Sasuke said, "I'm going to be more powerful than Itach-oniisan someday, and he's pretty strong."

"Well, he's no Hokage." Naruto replied with narrowed blue yes.

I snickered before speaking, "Well, you two can try to be as strong as you want. **_I'm going to be stronger than the Sage of Six Paths._**"

I knew the goal was impossible, but I just wanted to join in. Who knows...maybe someday, Itachi-oniisan would become Hokage. Then they'd be real rivals, eh?

They stared at me for a moment in surprise. I then got two reactions.

Naruto: "Who's that?"

Sasuke: "But you're a girl."

I smirked at Sasuke, before I whacked him over the head, "Watch it. One of the legendary Sannin is a girl. She could easily pound any guy into the ground."

"OOW!"

Then, I turned to Naruto, "The Sage of Six Paths was this really powerful guy who showed everyone how to use chakra. He's the strongest person to ever live."

"Whoah...I wanna be that strong."

"Well too bad. You already decided to be Hokage." I said with a taunting grin, "But for now...Naruto-niisan is IT."

I poked his shoulder and took off running across the yard, glad I wore shorts.

I kicked off my sandals part way through the game.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Now, let's throw kunai!"

Sasuke and I nodded. while my not-brother went to pick up his toy kunai from the grass, I unzipped Kyo-kun and passed a couple to Naru-kun.

We all turned to look at the row of target's hung up on the fence.

"Ready?" I asked.

"Set?" Naruto added, grinning.

"Go!" Sasuke said loudly before the three of us all threw our kunai.

Sasuke's was the closest to hit the centre of his target, missing by a few centimeters.

My kunai hit a little over the red spot.

Naruto managed to get his kunai dead center. On MY target.

That sent us all into a laughing fit, although Naru-kun was a little embarrassed.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Hirarira, hirarirari." I sang under my breath while watching the clouds. Naru-nii and Sasuke-not-nii had both fallen asleep halfway through a game of hide and seek.

It was kinda cute, since they kind just collapsed on each other like a pile of puppies.

I got to my feet and skipped inside after seeing a cloud that reminded me a bit too much of a coffin. It was a dumb reason to go inside...but it reminded me of everything that was coming.

Mama and Mikoto were happily talking to each other, sipping from their tea when I came into the room.

Without a word, I crawled onto my Mama's lap and hugged her. I needed her. It wasn't fair that she was dying. It wasn't right.

Why did everyone die?

How would everyone die?

Would they all end up like they did in my dreams? I couldn't take it.

"Aki-chan...? What's wrong sweety?"

I shook my head, not answering. Instead, I kept my eyes shut and let myself fade into sleep. It was a skill I often used. It was kinda fun, being able to fall asleep almost when ever I wanted. I felt Mama chuckle.

I wasn't completely gone, but they continued talking, "So...will you take both of them?"

"Of course! I'll speak with Fugaku, but I doubt he'll say no. It that boy really Kushina's...?"

"Is there any doubt? He looks exactly like Minato."

"Akiko and Naruto...it's rather scary...isn't it?" Mikoto asked, "They look so much like those two..."

Mama let out a sad sigh, "I know. I walked into their room one night and I thought for a second it really was...Imagine what they'll look like when they grow up?"

"Aki will be beautiful...and Naruto certainly will look like Minato."

"Well, your boys are already quite handsome, so I guess we're even."

The two laughed, but Mama was the first to trail off.

"Miko-chan...do you think you could watch them for the night? I want to speak with the Hokage for a while...Besides...I know how much you want to dress Akiko up."

"Of course." Mikoto said, laughing quietly.

They continued on, but I slipped away before I could really figure out what they were saying.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

I cracked my eyes open, suddenly aware of the arms wrapped around me. Looking through my narrowly open eyes, I saw that I was on someone's stomach. Whoever it was, was laying down on what I believe was a couch.

I was still groggy from my nap, so I closed my eyes, annoyed by the bright red light cast by the setting sun.

I realized who was holding me as I took a deep breath in, ready to let out a sigh.

It was Itachi-oniisan.

I wiggled around so I was able to see my 'cousin'...soon to be older brother.

He woke up the instant he felt someone looking at him, and I offered a small smile before hugging him tightly. Itachi was a shinobi already, so he had to do lots of missions and stuff. Sasuke and I never got to see him.

He was always tired too, so when we did see him, we couldn't play with him.

"Hello Ita-oniisan." I murmured, not bothering to speak clearly.

I didn't bother wondering why he had me, or where Mama was.

"Akiko." He greeted in return, offering a slight smile. It was nothing much, but I had noticed that Itachi never showed a lot of emotion. I guessed it was because he was all...Nin-Nin.

I wiggled out of his graps, rolling onto the floor with a quiet thud. I managed to land on my feet, surprisingly. A good ninja always lands on their feet!

"I wanna show you something!" I said happily, motioning for him to come with me.

My cousin slowly got to his feet, following me. I went into the yard, grabbing a bunch of leaves from a low hanging branch on one of the nearby trees.

I made one leaf sick to my forehead, and then focused more on attaching the others to my fingers.

I grinned happily at him, until I noticed the somewhat startled expression on his face.

"What's wrong, Ita-oniisan?" I asked in confusion, stopping the chakra flow to the leaves, letting them drift uselessly to the ground.

"Who taught you to do that, Aki-chan?" He asked me curiously, not answering my question.

I smiled, "I saw some academy kids doing it so I taught myself!"

Itachi sent me a look that looked somewhat...withered...like a prune person.

I yelped, blinking in shock when I saw that he had flicked my forehead. I stuck my tongue out at him, "What was that for?"

"You can't just play with your chakra like that. You'll get chakra burns. Those kids at the academy are older than you, Akiko. Their chakra systems are more developed than yours."

I sighed, but nodded. I understood what he was saying. "Yes Itachi-oniisan."

"Good job though...You're doing much better compared to other children your age."

I grinned up at him, "I can also throw kunai really good! I get it right on target almost all the time!"

He smiled, "Well...how about we go inside and have some dinner? You must be hungry after all the running around you did with Sasuke and...Naruto."

I giggled, "Yep. They got all tired out and fell asleep waaaaay before I did."

Itachi ruffled my hair before he headed back into the house. I scrambled to keep up with him. Two of my steps was one of his, and he was a fast walker.

We entered the dining room a few moments later where Aunt Mikoto was working on something.

Itachi greeted his mother before he left, probably to go to his room and sleep again. This left me in a very dangerous situation.

I stared at Aunt Mikoto warily, glancing down at the item she was working on. It was a kimono, the rich green colour standing out compared to the dark blues, black and whites most people in the compound wore.

"Hello Akiko-chan, did you have a nice nap?" She asked me, smiling gently.

I nodded slowly, "Yep!"

Aunt Mikoto was my Mama's best friend, and I had been coming to see her for as long as I could remember...

She loved to dress me up, like I was some sort of doll. I knew that if she had a daughter, she would probably never wear the same outfit twice. Mikoto liked making me kimonos and other things by hand.

It was actually a great deal of fun, but there was a part of me that hated the girly-ness of it all. I didn't want to act like such a...civilian. They ran around in those frilly clothes and acted all high and mighty, only to hide behind the nearest ninja when trouble shows up.

By wearing clothing like that, people will naturally judge me and see me as a civilian, instead of a member of the Uchiha clan, and daughter of a kunoichi.

Within moments, I was in the kimono. The green went nicely with my red hair, not clashing as terribly as most reds and greens would. It also brought out the flecks of gold and green that were usually hidden in my dark brown eyes.

Small yellow flowers dotted the fabric while stitched vines and leaves danced across the fabric around them.

Aunt Mikoto was almost squealing like a school girl, although she was much too refined for that. Her happiness was infectious. Almost instantly, I was just as excited as she was.

"So cute!" She said, pulling me closer so she could tie the yellow obi a little tighter.

I giggled happily before an idea entered my mind, "Ah! We should have a tea ceremony!"

"What a good idea!" Mikoto agreed, "Plus, having a tea ceremony will help you be a better kunoichi."

I looked up at her, "How?"

"Well..Kunoichi have to be able to walk into any place and get any job, right? To help her blend in. So, if she knows how to have a proper tea ceremony, she could easily get a job at a tea shop, right?"

I nodded, "And...maybe people with information...would come to meet at a tea shop...right?"

Mikoto beamed, "Ah, you're always surprising everyone. That's correct...You know, Akiko-chan...your mother has told me that you and Naruto-kun want to be shinobi."

I nodded, smiling in excitement. I was going to be super powerful. I already knew why I wanted to be a kunoichi and everything.

"So, how about I teach you how to be a kunoichi? You'll be top of your kunoichi classes when you enter the academy."

The very thought made me jump in place. Everyone would respect me, and they'd all know that I was Uchiha Akiko: Number One Kunoichi in the World! Of course, that would make Naruto-nii the Number One Shinobi in the World, since we were siblings. It only made sense.

"Yes please!"

* * *

_**The song Akiko was singing was Hatsune Miku's 'Hirari Hirari'**_

_**Thank you to everyone who had reviewed, favourited and followed this story so far! Please continue to show your support!**_


	8. 7: Uchiha Kaito

**Chapter Seven: Uchiha Kaito**

A few days after Mikoto began teaching me how to be a kunoichi, Mama, Naru-kun and I began to notice a few changes around the compound.

Before my brother came along, the only person in our clan, besides Mikoto, Fugaku, Shisui, Itachi and Sasuke, that liked us was a man named Kaito.

He liked Mama. A lot. Like...he-kinda-wants-to-marry-her-but-she's-totally-oblivious-of-his-feelings kinda 'like'.

Or at least that's wha he told me when he asked me what my Mama liked. I found it odd that he'd pour all his feelings on a three year old. My guess was that he was on the Prune-People side.

Old people are wierd. Why didn't he just ask her out or something?

Of course, I didn't see what was so important about going outside with someone...but some of the teenagers in town were always talking about asking someone out, so it must have meant something.

_'I wonder if Ita-oniisan has ever gone out with a girl before...'_ I thought to myself.

Besides Kaito liking Mama, Naru-kun and I, we also noticed that people weren't openly yelling at us anymore...in fact...

It was like none of us existed to them.

Life was a little lonely.

But, Kaito came over alot more often.

"Who's that guy?" Naruto asked me, as we sat on the staircase, peeking between the bars of the railing, watching Mama greet Kaito.

"That's Uchiha Kaito...he's one of the few Uchiha who work as regular ninjas. Most of us work as police."

"Why's he here?"

_**"He wants to go out with Mama."**_ I replied on 'Sammy', knowing Mama could hear us whispering...since she was all...Nin-nin. I didn't want to ruin the surprise.

"**_What is...so...g-gre-great ab-about go-ing outside?_**" Naruto asked in a slow, hesitant voice, stuttering over the words in 'Sammy'.

It was always amusing.

"I'm not sure." I answered, switching back to our normal language.

"Huh."

"He comes over a lot...sometimes he brings flowers...now a days it's chocolates." I continued on, "Sometimes he brings me toys too!"

"Awesome!" He grinned, "Do ya think he'll bring me something too?"

"Sooner or later, yeah...if he wants to go out wih my Mama." I replied firmly, watching the tall man like a hawk as he brushed a piece of Mama's blond hair from her face.

Part of me didn't like him. Another part said Mama deserved him.

Part of me felt like he was trying to push Papa out of the picture...

The other part scoffed and told me to grow up. Mama shouldn't have to stay alone, just because I was clinging onto the memory of a person I didn't even have a memory of.

Mama looked happy enough.

From where I was sitting, I could see the happy, but kinda shy smile on her face. Her cheeks were a little red and she was fidgetting a bit, but she was happy.

I was glad...

She was sick...so she needed to be as happy as possible while she still could be.

"Naruto, it's time to start Operation-Make-Mama-And-Kaito-Fall-In-Love!"

Naru-kun nodded before his eyebrows furrowed, "**Fa-rrrrr. Farrr...Farr...LLLLLLLLL. Fa-llll...FALL!**"

I clapped happily, "You finally for the '**_L_**' sound right!"

"I got it! I got it! Dattebayo!" He cheered. I quickly shushed him before glancing back at Mama.

She and Kaito were watching us with content smiles. My eyes glanced down to their hands, which were clasped together.

'**_Oh wow...when did I miss that?_**' I asked myself, barely noticing the fact that it came out in 'Sammy'. '**_When did they get that close?_**'

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Our plan to get Mama in a relationship seemed to fail at every corner. First, no jewelry store would sell us a pretty enough engagement ring for some weird reason.

Then, Mama and Kaito kept telling us to go play with Sasuke-nii, who showed up half an hour after Kaito came.

"So...why are we trying to get Kaito to marry Aunt Himawari?" He asked for the third time.

Naru-kun and I snorted and my brother spoke, "Because..."

I look crossed his face and he looked to me in confusion.

"They're absolutely ADORABLE together." I explained. It was the simplest reason in all the Elemental Countries.

_"Plus_ Mama told me that when a man and a woman love each other very much, they have babies! I want a sister this time, since I got stuck with three brothers." I added as an after-thought, "Not that I don't love you guys."

Naruto's face scrunched up, "Love is gross."

I gasped, staring at him in horror, "Naru-kun! That's like saying ramen doesn't taste good! Or that the _Hokage is the weakest shinobi in the world!"_

Sasuke and Naruto stared at each other, but I wasn't done.

"It's like saying...saying...it's like saying that the only perpose ninjas have is to do D-rank missions for those crummy civilians!" I continued on, "Without love, none of us would be alive right now! Love is the reason ninja fight to protect this village- because we love our home and all the people in it!"

Naruto and Sasuke stared at me, dumb-founded, before my blond brother began to clap.

I bowed quickly, ignoring a thought that entered my mind and made me want to freeze. '**_It's like saying Tobi is _****not****_ a good boy._**'

I shook my head to get rid of the lollipop man from my nightmares.

"This is why Mama and Kaito _must_ fall in love."

Sasuke raised his hand, as though afraid to speak out of turn. I think I finally trained one of my brothers.

"Yes, Sasuke-nii?"

"I think they're already in love."

"WHAT?!"

"Yeah...they left five minutes ago on a date. They told me to tell you."

I looked over to Naru-kun, "Naruto! Do you know what this means?"

"No...what?"

"OUR PLAN WORKED! WE DID SUCH A PROFESSIONAL JOB, WE DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE IT WAS WORKING!"

"Yeah!" Naruto cheered and we high-fived each other, grinning.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

We spent the night at Sasuke-nii's house, since Mama and Kaito wouldn't be coming home for a while. Aunt Mikoto looked very excited when I told her they were going out.

I still didn't see the big deal of going outside alone with someone.

Uncle Fugaku wasn't as used to Naruto-kun as Mikoto, so he spent most of dinner staring at him as Naruto and I chattered on about how we were doing at home.

I noticed Aunt Mikoto flinched whenever Naruto let slip a 'Dattebayo' in his excitement.

Adults were weird.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Mama picked us up the next morning, with a massive smile on her face. Mikoto teased her about something, making her blush before we left.

"Mama..." I began, looking up to her as we walked back home, "Are you in love with Kaito?"

She stumbled for a moment, and looked down at us. Naruto and I grinned up at her cheekily.

A pink tinge began to cover her face, and it continued to darken over time.

"Ah- Well- Uh...STOP GRINNNING LIKE THAT!" She whined loudly, and refused to look at us.

My brother and I snickered. Mama was so cute.

"When are you getting married?!" Naruto asked, and once again Mama stumbled.

She was very clutzy for an ex-kunoichi.

"We're not going to- It's too early for us to be thinking about- Why am I telling you two this?" She asked us, looked at us with a questioning expression.

"Because you love us?"

"Cheeky little brats." Mama sighed, "You're too young to be asking me when I'm getting married...go back to thinking boys and girls have cooties, both of you."

Naruto paused, "Wait...girls have cooties?!"

"Eew...I touched Naruto...now I have his cooties!" I whined, wiping my hands off on Mama's shirt while Naruto leapt away from me.

"GROSS!" We cried out in sync before running ahead of Mama and into our home.

* * *

_**So...I think I made Tobi sound like a pedophile in this chapter by accident.**_

_**That aside-**_

_**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorite and followed this story. **_

_**Please review and I hope you have enjoyed this chapter~! **_


	9. 8: First Signs

**Chapter Eight: First Signs**

It had been two months since Naruto-nii had joined our family. We were both learning more katas, we knew how to read, write and Naruto was proving himself to be very smart...in his own kind of way.

Together, we had discovered the greatness of pranks. Our usual targets were the people who gave us and Mama trouble whenever they saw us.

Yesterday, we had fully utilised the last of Mama's hot pink paint. Why she had twenty gallons of the stuff we didn't know.

Oh...and the local art supply shop no longer had any glitter or feathers.

Kaito had found it all very amusing, and congratulated us. He came over often now, sometimes staying the night. It scared me the first time I came down stairs after having a nightmare and finding Kaito sleeping on the couch, half his body hanging over the floor.

Today, I was attempting to teach my brother how to direct the flow of his chakra. I had discovered recently that by moving my chakra down to my feet in the right amount, I could walk without making a sound.

Of course, it took a long time for me to figure it out...ever since I noticed that Itachi-oniisan could walk without making any noise. It was partially chakra use and partially the way you moved in general.

If we could run without making a noise, I was sure pranking would be a lot easier.

"Akiko...Naruto...I'm going to go inside." Mama said. Her voice was a bit fainter than it used to be. Over the past couple months, Mama had changed. She slept a lot more...she didn't start as many fights with the neighbours and she didn't play with Naruto and I anymore.

Instead, she just watched with this really sad looking expression.

Every time I saw her look at us like that, I felt as though my heart was going to crumble into dust. She was dying.

Mama wasn't going to live very long, and there was nothing I could do.

Maybe, if I was like Senju Tsunade...or that other girl in my dreams...then maybe I'd have a chance at saving her.

I let out a sigh, plopping onto the grass. Naruto, who had been chasing me, didn't have time to slow down and ended up tripping over me.

He was thrown forward and ended up rolling a few meters away from me. I let out a half-hearted giggle.

"Aki-chaaaan~! Why'd you stop?"

"I...I don't feel like playing anymore." I replied, "I don't want to be a little kid anymore. We can't do anything Naru-kun."

"What do ya mean?! We can do lots of stuff!"

"But nothing IMPORTANT! Mama's dying! She's only going to get worse and there's nothing I can do! I'm tired of being so useless!" I clenched my fists, glaring at my hands, "Naruto, what if my nightmares come true? All those people I see die every night...What if I could stop it all?"

"But...Aki-chan...they're just bad dreams...they won't come true..."

I scoffed, "We don't know that."

"What?"

"I-It's nothing." I sighed, ignoring the way my voice stammered. I got up and headed inside.

I clutched Kyo-kun tightly to my chest and curled up in my bed.

Mama was dying. I had known it would come...ever since that day in the Hokage's office. Mama was my world. I may have loved Aunt Mikoto, but she wasn't my Mama. I didn't want to live without her.

Mama wasn't afraid of anything or anyone. Now that I thought about it...it was probably because she was dying already that she wasn't afraid.

Now that her health was getting worse, she seemed less alive. She didn't laugh as loudly, or start fights with random people on the street who gave Naruto a bad look.

Since we had taken him in, people had started treating him...differently. Some were worse, but others actually offered him small, apologetic smiles from time to time.

Some people were just too afraid of Mama to start anything.

I worried about my brother. If Mama was gone...who would protect us? Who would protect him? Who would actually stop people from abusing him?

Would it be Ita-oniisan? Shisui-niisan? Uncle Fugaku? Kaito?

Me?

I didn't know.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

We asked Mama if we could go to one of the parks in the village, and she agreed. We picked up Sasuke-nii on the way, since we all knew he'd love an excuse to stop training for a little while.

The four of us left the compound, and as soon as we were sure the other Uchiha's wouldn't spot us, we all linked hands.

The clan wasn't happy with any of us, and we knew things would be even worse for Sasuke-nii if he was seen holding hands with us...

But if we didn't chances were that Naru-kun or I would get lost...maybe even Mama. She had a habit of getting lost very easily. It was quite annoying.

We found a nice park with a playground near the ninja academy in the center of the village.

Immediately, we left Mama's side and went to play. I quickly climbed up the play ground and went for the steepest slide I could find.

Before I went down, I paused for a moment, as an odd feeling of worry came up. I didn't like it. I looked around, searching for my family.

Mama was on a bench, talking with a couple of other moms...Sasuke was running from a little girl with blue-black hair, and Naru-kun was on a swing, having fun.

I nodded to myself. '_See, stupid. Everyone's having fun._'

I jumped a bit as I went down the slide. To my shock, a boy was passing the end of the slide, just as I came flying off. I had been going pretty fast, and there was no time for me to slow down before I ended up slamming into the boy.

"Ow." I muttered, although my landing had been softened very much by the boy.

I quickly got off of him and offered a hand, "Are you oka- Ah! Kiba!"

The boy looked up at me and blinked. He probably didn't remember me, we had met a few months ago...

He tilted his head before sniffing quietly, and he seemed to recognize me, "You're that girl with Mom's friend...Akiko?"

I nodded before I remembered to apologize, "Sorry about landing on you..."

He grins in the same feral way I saw his mom did, "No prob' you're not that heavy."

I smiled back at him before I glanced around once more, Naruto was still on the swing, Sasuke was on the swing beside him, out of the reach of the girl from earlier.

Mama was talking to Kiba's mom, a Yamanaka woman, a Nara woman, what I think may have been an Aburame male, and a lady who had no characteristics that implied she was part of a clan.

"Do you want to meet my brothers?" I asked, as I noticed the somewhat disappointed look on Naru-nii's face.

Sure Sasuke-nii was playing with him, but the civilian kids were avoiding him like the plague and the clan kids kept looking at him uneasily.

"Sure..." He said, looking around, as though he was looking for my brothers. I giggled. The best part of my family was that none of us looked alike- except for Sasuke-nii and Itachi-oniisan. They looked a lot alike, but that was because they were blood related.

I didn't look like Mama, but it wasn't all that important to me.

I grabbed Kiba's hand and tugged him along to the swing. My brothers noticed us heading over and they slowly stopped swinging.

"Aki-chan!" Naru-kun greeted, grinning over at me. Sasuke sent a smile my way.

"Naruto-nii, Sasuke-nii, I want you to meet Inuzuka Kiba." I said, as I tugged the brown-haired boy to stand beside me. He looked at Naru-nii uncomfortably.

I didn't doubt that he could sense everyone's reluctance to be near my brother.

"Kiba-kun, meet my brothers, Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage, and Uchiha Sasuke, the most awesome shinobi in the Uchiha clan." I pointed to each of the boys in turn, offering all three of them a big smile.

I had noticed from Mama's last visit to the Inuzuka household, that Kiba-kun acted similarly to Naru-kun, although I hadn't known my blond brother at the time.

I hoped they would get along...however, from the way the three of them were all looking at each other...they seemed a little...mad at each other. Which was stupid, 'cause they hadn't even started talking.

Maybe...they were going to end up...what had that crazy guy in the green suit shouted at that one guy with the weird hair...

Maybe they were all going to end up Eternal Rivals! Ah...that wouldn't due! They needed to be friends.

Now.

The three of them had all turned to stare at me, and I wondered why, until I realized that I was glaring at the three of them. I blinked and smiled for a moment.

"Ah, sorry. I got lost in thought...So! we're all going to enter the academy someday, right?"

Naru-nii and Sasuke-nii sent each other looks and nodded. They had their own weird Eternal Rivalry, but Mama had said it was healthy for them, so I let it be.

Kiba grinned again, showing off his teeth. They weren't sharp yet, but Mama and Kiba's mom had told me that they used a special technique that made them kinda like doggies. He'd have pointy teeth someday, and clan markings, and good hearing and smell.

"Yeah! Mom said I could get my own dog before I graduate and everything!"

"Lucky..." I said, "I really wanted a puppy, but Mama said we couldn't afford one."

"Well...maybe I'll let you play with my dog when I get one?" Kiba offered.

I let my smile grow into a grin, "**_Sweet_**~!"

Naru-kun sent me a look, which caused me to quickly cover my mouth. I was about to make an excuse when I heard an adult whisper something to another.

"_Is that..._that_ child?"_

_"I think it is...what is it doing here?"_

_"Sometimes I think they should just kill that kid and save us all the worry."_

I slowly turned my head and glared at the two women, who were clearly civilians. I never understood why they were called that when they couldn't be civil to save their own hides.

It was also clear that they were talking about my brother.

_"D-Do you see that little girl?"_

_"She's staring right at us..."_

_"Ah, I know who she is! She's that Saisei woman's kid...You know the story, right?"_

_"Oh yes...my sister in law's a kunoichi and she heard the story...she had a relationship with a foreign ninja, and then came home crying rape. Got herself knocked up and that nice man decided to marry her anyways, despite that fact that she's a who-"_

Suddenly, they both shut their traps. It may have to do with the fact that I had been walking steadily towards them with my brothers not far behind. I think Kiba may have been there too. Not sure.

"Excuse me, miss?" I asked, smiling cutely.

The first woman, who had recognized me as my Mama's child looked down at us, her eyes warily flickering behind me at me blond brother.

"Yes little girl?"

My smile morphed into a smirk, and they both stiffened. I could feel the rage bubbling up. Of course, I'd never heard that word they had used to describe Mama before, but it made me very angry.

"I was wondering if either of you think this place is suitable for using that kind of language? In fact, I don't think either of you should be here at all, considering you're both too ancient to even have kids...unless these are your **great** grandchildren."

They both had taken aback looks on their faces, which quickly changed to anger. Behind me, I could hear Naru-kun and Sasuke-nii snickering. Kiba was full out laughing.

"Also, I don't think you're setting a good example on the children with in hearing range. You can't whisper very well either...this aside, you shouldn't be speaking about the blood relations of innocent children playing at the park, trying to have fun. Did it ever cross your minds that perhaps we've done nothing to deserve this kind of ridicule from nameless old hags like you?"

By now, other people were looking over, namely the group of ninja parents who had gathered around my Mama in conversation.

A number of them looked very amused.

"Akiko, boys, let them be, they didn't know any better." Mama called, trying not to laugh too loudly. Of course the clan parents would have heard what they were saying. They weren't even that far, and the old ha- _Ladies_ thought they could get away with it?!

Despite my anger, I beamed over at her before herding all three of the boys over to Mama. I noticed that Naru-nii was looking around a little worriedly.

The other parents and some of the children kept casting looked at him, as though they were expecting him to attack someone, and like...rip their faces off with his bare hands.

"Alright kids...we better go, before Akiko needs to scold any more parents." My mother snickered as she finished. The other parents were showing various levels of amusement.

I said good bye to Kiba, who was now Kiba-kun, since he was going to let me play with his dog in the future.

As we were leaving, a little girl with pink hair ran up to Naru-kun and smiled, holding out a flower, "S-Sorry about my mom..."

Something about her reminded me of a person from my dreams.

"Ah...thanks." Naruto said shyly. His face was beginning to turn red

She looked over at me and offered me a flower too. I blinked in surprise, but offered her my own smile. Before she could apologize about her mother to me as well, I interrupted her.

"No worries. Adults can be kinda...silly."

The four of us snickered, and Mama sighed, but in a light hearted kinda way...not in the 'Oh my god let's go already.' way.

"I'm Saisei Akiko." I continued, holding out my free hand. The other tucked the daisy she gave me behind my ear.

"H-Hi...I'm Haruno Sakura..." The girl replied, looking a little nervous.

I smiled, "It's a pretty name."

"I'm U-Uzumaki Naruto." My blond brother said in a hushed tone. The very mention of his name could set off the very unpredictable Wild Civilian.

Sakura's eyes widened. She looked around, "My mom said I wasn't supposed to talk to you two..."

Naru-kun seemed to flinch, and I quickly wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

"B-but...I don't see why."

We both perked up, and offered her large grins.

"They're weird, but not bad." Sasuke said, before he introduced himself, "Uchiha Sasuke."

She giggled quietly. Naru-kun and I pouted.

"Alright you kids, Sasuke, Naruto and Akiko have to go home now, Sakura, but maybe you can all play together in a couple days." Mama said after a few more minutes.

The four of us nodded before my brothers and I left with Mama

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Sakura was a nice girl, but she was shy. Insecure about something. I wanted to change that. Because she had a mom and dad, I couldn't just ask Mama if we could keep her.

"Naru-kun, Sasuke-nii...we need to fix Sakura."

"What? What's the matter with Sakura?" Naru-nii asked, looking alarmed.

I smiled, "She's too shy. We need her to open up!"

Sasuke looked at us in amusement, but nodded eagerly.

"So...Operation Blooming Sakura?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.

I let out a joyful squeal. Finally, Sasuke was getting with the program.

Naru-nii and I then proceeded to tackle our dark-haired brother.

* * *

**_Ta-da~! So, this chapter is kinda the real start of everything- besides Akiko deciding she wanted to 'keep' Naruto._**

**_Anyways...Thank you to Himeno Kazehito for reviewing._**

**_In other news, I've started a poll to see where everyone wants Akiko's love life to go. I can't promise I'll go with the poll results, but it will at least tell me what everyone wants. As a WARNING though, the poll contains a bit of a SPOILER...If you do vote, I apologize beforehand about the spoiler. _**

**_Please continue to review, Favorite and Follow!_**


	10. 9: Markings

**Chapter Nine: Markings**

Mama made sure we were always happy. She took us out as often as she could, even as her health got worse and worse. She bought us whatever we needed or wanted...trained us as best she could.

Naruto and I were now working on our chakra control...we were ahead of most children our age knowledge wise...

We would be great ninjas someday.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Pssst! Sakura-chan!" Naruto whispered as my brother and I sat under a play set. Sasuke had to stay home that day, so Naru-kun and I had decided to make up for it by carrying out the first stage of our plan.

"Akiko...Naruto." She said quietly making her way over to us.

"Hello Sakuraa-chan!" I greeted happily, "Sasuke-nii couldn't come over today, so your stuck with just me and Naruto-nii."

"A-Alright..." She seemed a little embarrassed by how happily I greeted her, which was weird. She looked up at me, a curious look in her bright green eyes, before she looked at Naru-kun, and then back at me, "Why do you call them your brothers? You three look nothing alike..."

I felt my smile falter for a moment, "Well...they _are_ my brothers. Mama and I adopted Naruto-kun because he had no family...and Sasuke is actually my cousin, but pretty soon...Naru-kun and I will be living with him...so he's our brother now too."

"Why are you going to live with Sasuke-kun?" She asked.

Naru-kun looked a little disappointed about something, but then he shook his head and turned to me, "**_Should we terr her?_**"

I giggled when he mispronounced his 'L's, but then became more serious, "**_No. Too Serious._**"

Sakura looked between us in confusion, a hurt look crossing her face, "I-I can understand...you don't want to tell me..."

"No." I said, feeling overwhelming depressed, "I just...I can't talk about why...it hurts too much."

She seemed to understand that.

"So!" Naru-kun said, "Sakura-chan, are you going to become a kunoichi when you get older?"

"Um...well...I don't know. My Mom doesn't want me to..." Sakura looked down sadly.

"Well...she can't make all your decisions...It's your future." I said, feeling very mature.

"What about you two? Are you going to be ninjas?"

"I'm going to be HOKAGE!" Naru-kun declared loudly, jumping to his feet and pumping his fist, "Dattebayo!"

I giggled, "I'm going to be super strong...I want to be like the Sannin..."

"Who are the Sannin?" Sakura asked curiously.

I burst out into my story-telling mode, telling her all about Princess Senju Tsunade, Jiraiya the Super Pervert and Orochimaru the Missing Nin. I wasn't sure how I knew all of it, but it all just...flowed out like I'd said this a million times.

"So...Tsunade-san saves lots of people? And she's really strong?"

"Yup! I bet if you had good charka control, you could be just like her!" I grinned excitedly, before scrunching up my nose, "You know...minus the Sake."

Sakura giggled at that.

Laughter was good. It meant she was relaxed.

"M-Maybe I could be a medical Kunoichi? I won't have to fight in the front lines...So Mom wouldn't have to worry...and I can save lots of people!" Sakura said, just as excited as we were, "I wanna be a kunoichi!"

"Well...maybe we can play Ninja?" I suggested.

Naru-kun and Sakura looked interested.

"We're all from separate villages, and there is a massive fight at the borders...we have to fight for our countries!"

"B-But...won't that hurt?" Sakura asked, looking alarmed.

I shook my head, "It's only play fighting, we won't even hit each other. Besides, you'd probably hurt us more than we'd hurt you."

"What do you mean by that?" She asked.

"Well you've got your super streng-" I cut off, rubbing my temples.

'**_Not yet, stupid. When she's a lot older._**' I frowned at the thought, not really sure what it meant. wasn't even sure where it came from.

"Oh...so I have super-strength like Tsunade-san?" Sakura asked.

"Ah! I'll have a big dog like the Inuzuka!" Naruto called out.

I grinned, forgetting the odd thought, "I'll have a puppet controlled by chakra strings!"

At this, we came out from under the play set and ran to an open spot on the grass.

"I'm from Suna!" I declared, since it matched my puppet technique. Mama had told me all about the other countries and some of their techniques.

"I'll be from Konoha!" Naruto said, "Since I'm gonna be Hokage and all..."

"Um- I'll be...from...ah..."

"Sakura could be the Hanakage from Niwa!" I suggested.

"Where's that?" Naruto-nii asked.

"No where. I made it up, just for Sakura-chan."

"I like it..." She said, smiling sweetly, "Alright...B-Bring it on, Fifth Hokage and Kazekage! Niwa shall not fall!"

"This land belongs to the people of Fire Country!" Naruto proclaimed.

Some of the other kids stopped to see what we were doing.

"Do not forget about me! Suna shall claim this land and its fertile soil! You stand no chance."

"We'll see about that!" Sakura shot back before the three of us charged at each other. I pretended to be my puppet, moving in a slightly jolting way.

Naruto motioned with his had, calling his dog, Yokoito into the battle.

Sakura pretended to charge her arm with chakra before slamming it into the ground.

It went on like this for a while. I noticed people standing around to watch, so I guess we were being very convincing. Some people were glaring, but they weren't important.

Eventually, my puppet was pulverized by Sakura's strength, and I was forced to fight hand to hand with Naruto. Yokoito had been poisoned by my puppet and was paralyzed.

Sakura had been greatly wounded by the dog before the poison took effect, and she was forced to stop fighting and retreat from the battle. Now she too was watching us.

Naruto and I began to actually connect our hits, using some of the katas Mama had taught us.

I heard Mama congratulating Sakura on a fight well fought, as I dodged some of Naruto-nii's attacks.

"Ha! Hokage, you are getting sloppy! Are you already so tired?" I pretended to sweep his feet out from under him.

"A-As if!" Naru-nii wheezed, pretending to sound like an old person, pushing himself to his feet after having thrown himself down, "I could keep this up all day!'

"Even with my poison inside you?" I asked, my voice coming out sounding kinda scary as I twisted away from him as his fist shot out. I tried to kick him in the side, but he caught my ankle and pushed me away.

"What?!" Naruto cried out, "Kazekage...when did you-"

"When my puppet head-butted you...there are pores in its skull that release a paralytic gas...you, like your companion, shall fall under it!" i stood a bit away from him and laughed like a crazy person.

"As if!" Naruto protested, before he landed a light kick in my gut.

I ran backwards, pretending he had kicked me really far and backed up into a tree, before pretending to whack my head against the trunk.

I then, putting the back of my hand against my forehead, proceeded to fall over, as though unconscious.

A few people clapped, and I could hear Sakura giggling like mad. Naruto was running around proclaiming he was victorious, as usual.

I popped up to my feet and skipped over to Mama. She patted me on the head. She was on the Baby side. Not the Prune Person side...well...sometimes she treated my like a prune person.

"Sakura!" We looked over to see her mother stomping over. Sakura turned to us, "I-I gotta go..."

We nodded and said goodbye, quickly making our retreat.

Sakura-chan's Mama was scary.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"You know...you probably shouldn't play such violent games, you two." mama said as we were heading to the local library.

"Why? Naru-nii asked, "It's fun."

"I know...but a lot of kids your age are usually playing with their stuffed animals and blocks at your age...not...the Fourth Shinobi War."

"B-But..." I protested, "W-We're not like most kids our age..."

"No...you're not. You two are very smart for your age. You both paid attention during your classes...but it might be easier if in public...you act a bit less violent. Next time...play tag. Save beating each other up for morning training."

I think...I got what she wanted us to do. Stop playing ninjas...because the people in town were afraid of us already...they didn't need to see Naru-kun acting violently as a child.

"Yes Mama." I said.

Naruto looked towards me in confusion, "Eh? Aki-chan, why should we?"

"**_If you're going to be Hokage, you need to show that you can be peaceful in times of peace._**" I replied in 'Sammy'.

His eyes widened before he nodded quickly, "Got it! I'll be really peaceful!"

He then closed his eyes and took in a slow breath, and then exhaled a few seconds later. He took relaxed steps, still keeping up with us, but not running ahead.

This continued on until we were in the library. I pulled Naruto towards a large shelf. We usually read kids' books, not the ones with little pop-up folds or lots of pictures though, but today I felt like trying something a little harder.

I usually got a book meant for seven year olds, and then shared it with Naru-nii. We'd sit down and take turns reading each page.

I scanned through the titles. I couldn't read some of them, because they had a bunch of words I couldn't even pronounce. Others just sounded scary.

"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" Naruto suddenly shouted, making me jump in shock. A small squeak escaped my lips and I spun around to stare at him.

People looked up from their books and a couple glared at him, while others quickly went back to reading. The librarian huffed before bringing a finger to his lips.

I smiled to him apologetically.

"That whole peaceful thing is too hard..." My brother grumbled quietly. I snickered, placing a hand on his shoulder. What a silly big brother.

I couldn't really call him my little brother. He was a couple days younger than me, but he was also taller than me. He was my big little brother.

I settled for just letting him be the big brother.

We picked a book called 'The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Ninja'. I chose it because something about it screamed for us to read it.

Naru-nii thought it sounded cool.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

One day, Mama made me stay home while Naruto went to Sasuke-nii's. She had me sit in the dining room while she began setting out a couple items in front of me.

One was a large scroll that looked pretty old. The second was a bottle of ink that looked just as old. The third was a strange looking senbon that appeared to be hollowed out.

I knew what we were doing instantly. I noticed a few other kids in the village had markings...Like the Inuzuka clan or the Akimichi clan.

Mama had markings too. She told me that everyone on her side of my family used to have them. I knew Mama hadn't told Fugaku-san about this yet. He would be really mad.

Mama wasn't from the Uchiha clan, obviously, and I knew he didn't like her using the name...This would really bother him if he found out that I was going to be getting markings like Mama's while still carrying Papa's name.

But...what was life without ticking a few people off? You can't please everyone.

"Akiko...I think its time you received my clan's markings. You are the last child I know of that carries our blood line..."

I lived my life to please very few people. The number one person I wanted to always be happy was Mama...so of course I would accept the Saisei clan markings.

"I would be honoured to accept these markings." The words came out a bit too formal, but Mama and I did know when we had to be proper about them. Even if we hated being proper.

It wasn't a massive ceremony. Instead, we settled at the dining room table while Mama began glancing over the scroll in front of her one more time.

I looked to Mama's eyes where the red tattoos sat. They were very simple. It was just a single, thin line that started under the eyebrow and ended partway down the cheek bone.

I knew this was going to hurt though.

The eyelid was a very sensitive part of the body...

I wasn't even sure it could be tattooed.

Mama seemed to know I was worried.

"Don't worry Aki-chan. You'll be fine. I got mine when I was only a couple years older than you...and I didn't cry or anything. You can be a big girl for me...right?"

I nodded, falling for the non-too-subtle manipulation she threw in there. I may be smarted than the average three-year-old, but there were times when I needed to be a little kid.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Aki-chan! Mama!" Naruto called as he entered the house. I snickered at how awkward he sounded, calling Mama, **_Mama_**.

It must have been because **_Mama _**was a word in 'Sammy'.

"In here, Naruto!" Mama called. She patted my head reassuringly. Currently, my eyes were covered in bandages so my tattoos could heal.

"Sasuke almost killed me aga- WHAT HAPPENED TO AKIKO!?" Naru-kun yelled as, I believe, he walked into the room.

I giggled at his reaction, "Nothing Naru-nii. Mama gave me my Saisei markings."

"Oh! You mean those lines?"

"Yep!" I grinned.

"Alright...how about you two go play while I start on dinner tonight?

Naruto and I nodded before I heard him run along. I hesitated to leave my chair. Finally, I got off the piece of furniture and took a step forward.

By the time i reached my room, I swear I had managed to hit everything in the house.

It was then that I decided to add 'blind' training to my night time practices.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

My night time practices were getting more intense. After I learnt to push the chakra into my feet to walk silently, I began other things. Like tree walking.

I once saw Ita-oniisan trying it, and it looked like a lot of fun. At the time, I hadn't known for sure how to use it...but I was beginning to figure all this out.

I pushed the chakra to my feet and sprinted towards the tree in our yard. I managed to get two steps up before the chakra in my feet seemed to stop, and I came sliding down.

I bit back a growl and a number of hateful curses.

'**_It's alright. I have plenty of time._**' I thought to myself. After all...Mama said we probably wouldn't join the academy until we were six, or eight, and then we'd graduate around eleven with the other kids our age.

From what I could understand, my chakra wasn't balanced...I was book smart, but I was also weak. Most girls were. I needed to change this. I needed to be stronger.

'**_Calm down. Remember? I've got plenty of time. Plenty of time..._**'

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

_The sky was crying, as it often did, adding more water to the already soggy earth. There was a battle raging..._

_A man with white hair fought his students. The blue haired woman had grown up to be beautiful, even as her papers tore into his skin._

_The man wondered where one of his students was...why the orange haired one had the eyes of his red-haired companion._

_Sannin or not, the white haired man stood no chance. The three children he had taken care of had grown up to be powerful...He came to realize that the red-haired boy, a man now, was not the 'Child of Prophesy', like he had hoped._

**The scene changed.**

_Six people stood facing each other not far from a bounty post, hidden in a bathroom._

_Two of the men present wore black cloaks, decorated in blood red clouds lined in white. One wore a mask to cover his face, only showing his oddly coloured eyes, while the other barely wore his cloak, letting it fall off one shoulder._

_The other four were Konoha ninjas...a three man squad, along with a jounin sensei._

_A fight broke out, and the second man in a cloak took on the ninjas, swinging his scythe around._

**Time blurred forward.**

_The sensei clutched his chest as blood poured freely from his wound. Across from him, the silver-haired man fell over, dead, just like the sensei._

_Only the silver-haired man didn't stay dead. He got up again._

**Time rolled backwards, going further and further back-**

_A lumbering monster stood over Konoha. Nine tails lashed out, destroying and killing. Its chakra was so thick, so powerful, that she could feel it pressing down on her, making it impossible to cry out- **What the hell was this?!**_

**Further back. Further and further back-**

BANG_!_

_Pain, pain, pain- **Are they okay? Please tell me they got away...**_

I sat up with a scream, and the noise just kept coming.

* * *

**_I apologize for the long wait, I've been very busy working on one of my other stories..._**

**_A massive thanks goes out to _xenocanaan, ShatteredRose212, Guest_ and _Himeno Kazehito!**

**Don't forget to vote in the poll (although I may not follow the results, and there is a bit of a spoiler in the options)**

**I ****hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to tell me what you think!**


	11. 10: Fugaku's Wrath

**Chapter Ten: Fugaku's Wrath**

Instantly, Naru-nii was there, hugging me tightly. Naru-nii was a good brother. I didn't want to scream anymore, but the noise just kept coming...

I was scared.

I wanted Mama.

So...Naru-nii and I went to find Mama. She was halfway down the hall when we got to her. She looked pale...but not worried.

I was always screaming. I don't know how any of us every got to sleep at night.

Mama hugged my tight and carried my back to our room. Naru-nii and I climbed into bed as she sat on the side.

Mama told us a story about a distant land...and a man with a dream.

He wanted to be free, unlike everyone else...so he climbed into a boat and sailed away. He got lots of friends along the way as he traveled around the world. It was said that they gathered all the treasure in the world, and the man hid it all in one place.

By the end of the story, I was still too scared to go back to sleep.

I didn't want to dream again...I didn't want to hear that noise again- smell the blood, hear the screams. Feel the pain.

That night Mama slept with us.

Naru-niichan and Mama both wrapped their arms around me, keeping me safe and warm.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Mama, Naru-kun and I sat in Uncle's office. All three of us had our heads ducked, and we glared at the floor.

I'm willing to say...I was really, really scared. Uncle was furious.

He was mad for a bunch of reasons, and the pot had finally boiled over.

_First: Mama adopted Naru-nii without Uncle's permission._

"You can't just take in a random street-rat when ever you feel like it. The Uchiha Clan has a good reputation to uphold!"

This was probably the first time I heard him yell. Mama on the other hand, well...I'd never heard her sound so cold. It scared me more than Uncle's yelling.

"Oh yes." She snarled, "A good reputation. Face it, Konoha hates us already, and maybe taking in an orphan would prove we aren't as _heartless_ as the _entire village_ seems to think."

"Himawari, you are not an Uchiha. You have no right to go making these kinds of decisions!"

"I'll make what ever decision I want. I may not be an Uciha by blood, but I married your younger brother, if you'd care to remember."

"Do not bring that up! The Hokage an the Council all believe this was some sort of power plot I made up!"

Naru-nii and I glanced at each other. What did having Naru-nii in the family have to do with anything? Power?

Maybe they knew Naru-kun was going to be an amazing Hokage someday?

"I already spoke to the old man, and he got it! I took my son in because Akiko asked me to! I took him in because he's a little boy that no one else will care for! Naruto is one of the best things that has happened to me!"

"Danzo wants to take the boy- he said that if we weren't plotting anything, we'd be willing to give him up."

I snarled along with Mama. I didn't know who this 'Danzo' was, but if he wanted Naru-nii, he'd have to get through me. Hearing that name bothered me...I was really angry...why was I so mad?

I couldn't remember meeting anyone named Danzo...

"He can't have him." Mama said, her blue eyes flickering to Naru-nii. "Tell Danzo-sama that some people have hearts, with actual emotions, and are attached to Naruto-kun. I have no intentions of handing my son over to the monster. My children stay with me!"

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Later that day, we went to the Hokage's office where Mama continued to rant. Jiji looked tired today, and he seemed to almost shrink in his seat as Mama went on.

She was mad. She made Uncle Fugaku's anger look like that of a chipmunk's. Hers was like a lion.

The issue with Naru-nii living with Mama and I got cleared up. The old ma-_the Hokage_ even promised us that no one would bring up the problem again.

I didn't understand why people were so jealous...if they wanted an awesome brother like mine, they should go look in an orphanage.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

_Second: Getting my Saisei Markings without Uncle's Permission._

My brother, Mama and I found ourselves once again in Uncle Fugaku's office. He was mad again.

"And if it weren't bad enough that you insulted the Hokage, now that you've dragged the Uchiha name through the mud, you do this!" He pointed at me, his face absolutely livid.

Unlike most of the time, he was showing a lot of emotions...'**_Man-Period much?_**'

"Fugaku-san, please. Use your words." Mama said, raising an eyebrow. Naru-kun and I tried not to snicker. Tried would be a very, very important word there...

"You marked this child, with your clan markings, even though she carries the Uchiha name! You were married into this clan, and therefore you have lost the right to carry on the Saisei ways!"

"Did you not say I wasn't to speak about my marriage the last time we were here? And you know as much as I do that she _needs _those markings. Without them, you're putting her life at risk. Clan name be _damned_, I am not letting my baby die, just because you want her to be nothing but Uchiha!"

Ah...did she just call me a baby? I'm NOT A BABY! I'm three years old! I'm like a prune-person already...I just have a baby-face.

Uncle ignored Mama, "Because she had been given these markings...we must change her clan name to that of your maiden family's."

"Fine." Mama snapped. She looked really, really angry...

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

_Third: The Single Status of your Daughter and her Prestigious Blood When There Should Already be Plans._

"Himawari, I have come to realize that it may not be necessary to change Akiko's surname name at all. Your daughter has a rare blood line, with high levels of chakra, good looks, and high fertility."

Something told me I really didn't want to know what fertility meant. It sounded gross.

"Oh Kami, please tell me you aren't planning-" Mama began, but Uncle rudely cut her off- What a meanie!

"If you cannot find a proper suitor for her by the time she enters the academy, it will be arranged for her and my second born to be wed."

Naru-nii and I did a double take, openly staring at the man. Was he serious...me and Sasuke-nii getting married?!

'**_THAT'S INCEST_**!' I screamed in my head, '**_Although...it's only mentally incest..._**'

'_Huh. What's incest anyways?_' I thought after a moment.

"I object." I said, raising my hand.

"I second that objection." Mama said.

"Yeah! OBJECTION!" Naru-nii hollered, jumping to his feet, "Akiko-nee can't _marry_ Sasuke! They're like brother and sister- That's gross!"

"Then you had better find her a husband before she joins the academy."

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

_Fourth: You are not to set off paint bombs inside the Uchiha compound- Even if you say it's for training._

Uncle looked ridiculous. Magenta paint oozed down, through his raven hair. Bright blue splattered his clothing, with hints of lime green, off-white, periwinkle and a nice shade of pink called 'Bride Blush'...or something like that.

They were all very nice colours.

Oh...and I guess I forgot another colour...

You see...Uncle, under all the other colours, was covered head to toe in bright orange paint. Still, under the bright orange, we could all see that his face was becoming a peculiar shade of red.

* * *

_**Ah, I'm sorry about the wait. School's evil, and I no longer have any free time... This is a bit of a filler chapter but a few important things are mentioned.**_

_**Thank you to Chaos Evans and Himeno Kazehito for reviewing!**_

_**Don't forget to review, follow, favorite and, of course, VOTE IN THE POLL **_

_**So far it stands at: **_

_**Gaara-12 **_

_**Shikamaru-8 **_

_**Haku-7 **_

_**Kiba-6 **_

_**Sai-5 **_

_**Neji-5 **_

_**Shino-3**_


	12. 11: Faded Flame

**Chapter Eleven: Faded Flame**

"Mama...Are you feeling okay?"

I had finally asked her.

She was paler than before...her hair no longer shined in the sun...her markings looked liked lines of blood, now stark in contrast with her skin. Her blue eyes showed me just how tired she was.

I had panicked when I first awoke this morning, and Naruto had joined me when we realized she hadn't woken us up for our morning katas. Or calligraphy...or whatever it was she had planned for today. She never really told us, but if we had a day off, she'd always tell us the night before...

That wasn't normal!

So...Naruto and I had gone to her room to see if she was alright. We found her in bed, staring at an old picture. It looked like she had been crying.

The picture was one of her genin team. Mama, Papa and their team mate, Kaoru, all stood grinning while holding up their sensei. The woman laid across their hands with one arm folded behind her head and one leg slightly bent, staring directly at the camera.

I guessed it was Mama and her teams' idea, because their sensei had a fabulous deadpan expression in the image.

A master of the poker- _Ninja_ Face.

Mama said I shouldn't even know what poker was. I wasn't sure I should know either. Yet, somehow, I knew exactly what it was. I also knew I was terrible at it.

Mama hardly even looked up when we came in, only noticing us as we crawled onto the bed with her, one of us on either side.

Now, she stared at me for a long moment, and her eyes misted up. In an instant, she had her arms wrapped tightly around Naru-kun and I, her face buried in our hair.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..." She whispered, her hand trailing through my hair, which had begun to darken over time. "I am a terrible person...absolutely despicable. The scum of the earth."

"Mama!" I said in protest, pulling away to stare at her as though she had grown an extra head.

Why was she being so dramatic? Why was she so depressed? What was she saying, hadn't she always gotten mad at me when I went on a bout of self-loathing?!

Old people were always so...ugh!

"I have a couple secrets...and I should have told you two sooner..." She sighed, "Do you want a good secret...or a bad secret?"

Naruto and I looked at each other, "Bad first?" We asked in sync. At least this way, we'd cheer up afterwards...right?

"You two are very smart for your age...aren't you?"

We nodded, "You made sure we were." I said.

"I did...but I didn't need to. You two are so much smarter than people think. So smart...I'm sure you already know what the bad news is."

My brother and I shared another look before we nodded. I felt tears well up in my eyes. I could finally cry now...right?

The same thing appeared to be going through Naruto's mind, since I could see tears in his eyes through my own.

Mama's arms tightened around us, "I'm sorry. You've both been very strong."

We started bawling as she began speaking again, "I once went on a very dangerous mission, and I encountered a missing-nin called Akasuna Sasori...he is a poison expert and he used puppets to fight.

"I was so stupid. I tried to take him on...thinking I was strong enough. I was badly injured by one of his puppets and poisoned. There was no antidote. It was a small enough dose that it didn't kill me instantly though...It's been inside of me for all this time...and I can't fight it off anymore."

I let the tears fall. It was one thing over-hearing it through a door...it was another to hear her say it right to us.

My brother and I clung tighter to our mother.

"Hey, quit crying you two...I'm not gone yet...and I'll have at least another year, if I really push it."

Mama really wasn't helping. She was going to die and Naruto and I would just be passed on to Mikoto and Fugaku...and if my nightmare came true then...then...

"Now then...the good secret." Mama's voice pulled me from my troubles. She was beaming happily, as though the first discussion had never happened. "You're going to have a younger sibling."

.

.

.

.

.

Waitwaitwaitwaitwait wait...What?

"OH MY GOD YOU'RE PREGNANT!?" I squealed, staring at her in surprise.

Naruto wiped away his tears on the back of his forearm before a very pitiful but cheeky grin took over his face, "So Mama...when are you and Kaito getting married?"

Mama blushed again. Ah, she was so cute. You know...for a dying person...

"W-We were thinking some time next month. I still want to look _fabulous_ when it's time for my wedding photos."

We laughed, but I found it a little scary. There were two implications behind what she was saying. One: She wanted to look healthy when everyone saw her walk down the aisle. Two: She didn't want anyone to find out she was gonna have a baby before they were married.

'**_It might be both._**'

'_Ah, that's true-_'

It then dawned on me that I was now answering my own thoughts. I was crazier than I thought.

"Now, both of you...quit crying and go practice your katas...I slept in a bit this morning, so we're running behind schedule. I'm thinking today's the day I take you to meet a couple friends of mine."

We nodded eagerly, wiping away our tears and running out of the room to get ready to training.

I wanted to know who we were meeting.

* * *

**_!~Happy Thanks Giving~!_**

**_Anyways~! I've had the last few days off of school, thanks to the holiday, so I had some free time and I decided to write this...rather short chapter. I've begun working on the next one, and I really can't wait...one of my favorite OC's is going to be introduced._**

**_And yes, Akiko's family is growing once again! Yay Kaito and Himawari..._**

**_Thank you to Kiku-Pyon and ShatteredRose212 for reviewing!_**

**_As the Poll stands we are now at:_**

**_Gaara: 17_**

**_Shikamaru: 15_**

**_Haku: 12_**

**_Sai: 8_**

**_Neji: 8_**

**_Kiba: 7_**

**_Shino: 5_**

**_Remember, everyone gets four votes! Don't forget to vote for the poll on my profile, or send in your votes through a PM or review~!_**

**_Also, I'm a little curious, what do you all think of Himawari? I just thought I should ask...since she won't be around for very long._**


	13. 12: Risa

**Chapter Twelve: Risa**

Mama knocked loudly on the dark wooden door, where the number 44 sat proudly in brass, as though it wasn't such an ominous number. Death-Death didn't have a lovely ring to it.

The word death had always bothered me. Was it bad that I saw death as a disappointment? I don't know why but...it didn't seem so scary. I just...didn't like it. It was almost...annoying. Like biased people. I don't like them either-

The door swung inward so fast that it slammed into the wall and bounced away, slamming shut once again. A frustrated voice muttered before the door swung open again, and a blob of red and brown wrapped around Mama.

It took me a moment to realize what was going on.

Mama stood in the hallway with a biiiiiiiiiig smile as she patted a short brunette woman's head.

The lady was dressed in weird clothing, like the people in my picture book about Suna, but she had a Leaf headband wrapped around her left thigh.

"Ah~! My cute little Himawari-chan has come to see meeee~!" the lady giggled, picking Mama right up off her feet as she continued to hug my Mama. Was it bad that I was...kinda...just a little, itty-bitty, teeny-weeny little bit jealous?

Naru-kun was edging behind me, as though to hide. That wasn't very brotherly...

"Ah...yeah...Hello Risa-sensei..." Mama said awkwardly, with a pained look on her face. And she was turning blue. Was that good?

Uncle was always turning red...maybe blue meant the opposite of 'I'm So Angry I'd Strangle You if you Weren't Only Three'

What struck me as odd was that she called the lady sensei, when she wasn't the saw woman in Mama's genin team photo.

The tiny lady dropped Mama suddenly and spun around on her heel to stare at my brother and I. She was older than Mama by...maybe...seven or so years? Something like that.

She had large eyes with black irises, and long brown hair that trailed to the ground. A red-brown sleeveless vest trailed down to her ankles, covering an off-white-kinda-grey top that ended just above her belly button. She wore black shorts that ended just above her knees, with the headband displayed proudly around her left leg.

She was very pretty.

Naru-nii and I stared at her for a while longer, trying to figure out what to say.

"Ne, Hi-chan...who's are these?" 'Risa' said, tilting her head slightly as she stared back at us with wide black eyes. She kinda reminded me of a little kid. Maybe she had the opposite problem that I had. She was a baby in a not-quite-prune-person body.

"Mine." Mama said, smiling proudly.

Risa spun around to stare at Mama, "You had babies and you didn't tell your lovely, loving teacher!? Ah, how could you~!"

Suddenly the Suna-nin had her arms wrapped around Naru-nii and I as she nuzzled her face in our hair.

"Well, I only had one of them, and I did tell you when I was pregnant with Akiko, but you haven't replied to my messages in over six years." Mama said, sounding a little annoyed at the end.

Risa gave an innocent little laugh before she looked down at the two of us, "You know Hi-chan...I don't mean to criticise your choices or anything, but don't you think 'Akiko' sounds a little feminine for a boy?"

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Oh~ So the _girl_ is Akiko. And the boy's name is Naruto. Kinda like the character from that weirdo's book?"

"Yes Sensei." Mama said, rolling her eyes.

Risa had dragged us into her hotel room and was flitting about, pulling things out of her bags, which littered the room. There had to be at least seven of them.

"Now that I look at them closer, the boy doesn't look a thing like you~. The little Lady doesn't look much like you either, but in your family, that's perfectly normal, isn't it, Hi-chan?"

Mama winced before she confirmed it, "Yeah."

Risa handed each of us an ENTIRE box of cookies before she went back to rummaging through her baggage. I think she was my new favorite person, right after Itachi-oniichan...that made her...fifth? Not a bad rank, really. Out of everyone I knew...

"Hm...I take it they're becoming ninjas?"

At the word 'Ninja' Naru-nii almost blew-up. "YEAH! I'm gonna be Hokage!"

I giggled, "Yep! I don't know what I want kind of kunoichi I wanna be...but I wanna be just as strong, if not stronger than Naru-nii."

"THERE'S NO WAY YOU COULD BE STRONGER THAN ME!" Naru-ni protested. Mama and I let out little snorts.

"Tell that to this morning's spars. All three of them." I said in a neutral tone, before I snickered, "Don't worry Naruto...I'll only be as good as the Sage of Six Paths...you might catch up."

I was only joking though. I knew enough to know that Naruto would always be physically stronger than me, unless I put in a lot of serious training. Which I would. I needed to be stronger than everyone else...otherwise I wouldn't be able to protect my brothers...and possible sister. I really hoped it was a girl. Too many boys...

Of course, there wasn't any way for my to be equal to the Sage of Six Paths. Maybe a sannin, although it was unlikely. Sometimes, from what I saw in my nightmares, I wasn't even sure I could make it to Jounin...everyone was so powerful, but they always died anyways...

A hand waved in front of my face, making my jolt out of my thoughts. I looked up to see Risa standing in front of me.

"You know, you're mother had that same habit when she was younger." The brunette had a soft smile on, different from the massive grin she had been giving Mama during the entire visit. "She was always spacing out on me."

"I was not. You just kept giving my concussions." Mama hissed, but my brother and I knew she was joking.

We hope.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

I watched in awe as the puppet and Risa danced around the room together in smooth flawless movements. The only sign that the puppet wasn't a living being made of wood was the way Risa's fingers twitched every once in a while. For the most part, she didn't even need to move them.

She also had her eyes closed the entire time, but they both were able to avoid anything that blocked their way in the room.

My mind flashed back to the game of Ninja that Naruto, Sakura and I had played. Puppets seemed like a good idea...If I could learn to move around while using a puppet...it would be like having another person on the team during the fight...

I could fight using taijutsu, maybe kenjutsu...and the puppet could still fight at the same time.

'I once went on a very dangerous mission, and I encountered a missing-nin called Akasuna Sasori...he is a poison expert and he used puppets to fight.'

I flinched at the thought...could I really use a puppet? Wouldn't that be...mocking Mama?

'**_Think of it as Honouring her._**'

'_How is it honouring her?!_'

'**_Well...if you become a puppet user...you can train with her Sensei...and then, if you become as powerful as you plan to, then you could even defeat him in his own game. It would be a great battle...puppet versus puppet. Just...don't actively seek him. Never go after him. Got it?_**'

'_Yeah. Whatever._' I thought sourly. She did have a point though-

Wait...she? Great. Now the voice in my head had a gender.

What was going on? I...I was losing it. I was an insane prune-person in a baby body.

Again, the hand was waved in front of me face. I jumped slightly and looked up at Risa. She had a focused look on her face as she stared at me, tilting her head ever so slightly, in an almost mechanical way.

I noticed that Mama had gone to the washroom, and the puppet was currently playing tag with Naru-nii.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Risa asked, staring into my eyes like she could see into my very soul- of course, that was just the impression her black eyes gave off.

I closed my eyes for a moment and made up my mind. '**_Looks like I won~!_**'

"Puppets." I said, locking eyes with her, "I'm thinking about puppets. How do you make them move?"

I already knew the answer...but I didn't know how to make chakra strings. I could move my chakra around INSIDE my body -by now it was easy- but I didn't know how to get it OUTSIDE, let alone in a little string.

She gave me a strange look, before it turned into a beaming grin, "Well, I use chakra threads of course."

"Chakra threads?"

She plopped down on the floor in front of me, "I focus some of my chakra together and then push it out of my fingertips, like this."

I watched as a visible chakra thread appeared from her finger tip. I knew she was only making it visible for my sake.

A master could suppress the chakra in their strings, making them invisible. I would definitely need to learn to do that...

"And then I just make it attach to something like...Aki-chan's hand~!" I watched the thread grow until it touched my arm. She wiggled her finger, and my arm moved with her finger.

I grinned, "I wanna learn to do that!"

She smiled, before glancing towards the bathroom, where my Mama was just leaving. "I'd have to talk with your mother about it...but I'm sure I could teach you...it'll be tough though...you might have a teeny-tiny bit of trouble, since you're a little-"

"I can already channel my chakra to my hands and feet." I whispered quietly, dropping the act, now that she had offered to teach me.

"Ah, such a little smarty pants~!" She cooed, reaching forward and pulling me into a hug, just as Mama got within hearing range.

"Sensei, careful not to kill my daughter, she does need to breathe you know..." Mama reminded with a playful smile.

I gasped for breath as the powerful arms of the brown haired lady released me.

"Oh yes...Himawari-chan, I've decided to steal your daughter~! She's my new student, since you won't let me teach you anymore." Risa said with a pout, before she collected me in her arms again, rubbing her cheek against mine while staring accusingly at my Mama.

Mama blinked, before a look of terror crossed her face, "I-I don't think it would be a good idea...maybe Akiko should look at other kinds of weapons before we try using puppets..."

"Aw, come one Hi-chan! You have all those puppets in your house, it won't hurt for the little Lady to try, will it? I could even try teaching the little Lord too~!" She gestured to my brother who was play fighting with the humanoid puppet.

"Really, Sensei...this isn't a good idea..."

"Why not?" I asked, trying to think of any reason she might have to not want us to use puppets. All I could think of was the Sasori thing, but I had already gone over it with the voice in my head.

That...really made me sound crazy, didn't it?

"I...I don't want you making the same mistake I did-"

"I won't go after 'him'." I said quickly.

Mama blinked again, before a resigned look crossed her face, "When did you get good at reading minds?"

I put on a thoughtful expression, "Um...since...last week?"

"I see." Mama said in a voice as thoughtful as my expression had been, before it changed and she looked at Risa...although I guess she was going to be Risa-sensei now, wasn't she?

"When is your next long term mission?" Mama asked. Risa pouted.

"It's terrible, Hi-chan! I only got here last week, and they wanna ship my off to the Mist for three months! And that's only if things don't get complicated...but...but..."

"Things always get complicated." Mama offered, patting Risa-sensei on the back.

"They doooo...But, if it lasts over a year, I have permission to abort the mission and head home...and then I can use my saved-up vacation days...I should have at least two years after that to train them."

"I-I see..." Mama said, "Well...you'll have to take it up with their godparents...Akiko, Naruto, why don't you two go to the park for a while? I need to talk with Risa-sensei for a bit, I'll come pick you up later, all right?"

Naru-nii stopped playing with the puppet and walked over to us, looking a little tired out. I climbed out of Risa-sensei's arms, trying not to feel sad. It was obvious what Mama needed to say to her teacher.

"Okay!" I said, pulling on a fake smile as I gripped my brother's hand, "Maybe Kiba-kun, or Sakura-chan will be there?"

"YEAH!" Naruto cheered.

"Have fun you two." Mama said before she gently pushed us out the door and closed it behind us.

We stood in the empty, dimly lit hall and look at one another.

"Um...wanna race?" My brother asked after a moment.

I nodded, and with much determination, we took off running as fast as our stubbly little legs could carry us.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

We ran around the almost empty playground like it was an obstacle course, until we tired out. Since Naru-nii had been play fighting with the puppet, and then we ran the entire way to the park, even Naru-nii agreed we should relax a bit.

We found a nice hill by the playground under the shade of a large tree and decided to lay down.

We closed our eyes and listened. The sound of the leaves dancing in the wind reminded my of the ocean, although I had never seen it.

'**_You have. You just can't remember._**'

'_The doesn't make any sense...I'd remember seeing the ocean.'_

_'_**I'm just saying, you have seen the ocean before. Ignore me. I'm just the voice in your head, that's way smarter than a three year old like you...**_'_

'Don't be so condescending.'

_"__**It's true." **_The voice suddenly sounded different, as though it wasn't in my head anymore. My eyes snapped open and I looked around, but I couldn't see anything. I shrugged and flopped back down to enjoy the nice day.

"Troub'some." A voice said. It was one I definitely knew wasn't in my head.

My brother and I sat up and looked up the hill a bit where a boy stood. He was around our age, with spikey black hair, that was almost long enough for him to put in a pony tail, if he wanted. He had brown eyes, and a rather annoyed expression.

It was Nara Shikamaru. I saw him in this park from time to time with another boy...I think he was...

'**_Akimichi Choji._**' The voice supplied.

I could never remember who he was, but I'd always known him. It was odd...he didn't know me.

"Whaddya mean, 'troublesome'?" Naru-nii asked, narrowing him eyes.

"Naru-nii." I said, silently telling him to be polite. I turned to the boy, "Are we in your spot?"

The boy didn't respond, and instead flopped down beside me. I shrugged and laid back again. With nothing else to do, Naruto did the same.

We all stared up at the clouds in an almost comfortable silence.

I blinked before a small giggle escaped.

"What?" Naruto asked me.

I pointed to one of the clouds, "It looks like deer."

"Wha...you're right." Naruto said.

"There's a leaf." Shikamaru added, barely raising his arm to point towards it.

"Alright! My turn!" Naruto said, "I see a...I see...A snake!"

"Toad." Shikamaru said. My eyes latched onto it before I started looking around, wondering if there was a slug anywhere nearby, to complete the trio.

Instead, I saw something better. "**_Moose_**!"

I loved moose.

"What?" Shikamaru said, looking confused.

"Sorry...it's like a deer, but bigger with different antlers and...stuff."

"Troub'some." As he spoke, the boy let his eyes drift shut.

"Um...I'm Uchiha Akiko." I said, finally deciding to introduce myself.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" My brother added with a grin.

The boy opened one eye and stared at us for a moment, "Nara Shikamaru."

"Are you going to be a ninja?" I asked, catching my brother's attention. He looked just as interested as I was.

"I suppose."

"Well, I'm going to be the Hokage!" My brother said, puffing his chest out proudly.

"Why? That's a lot of work..."

"Well, when I'm Hokage, people will stop looking down on us. They'll see us as someone important."

I looked at him in surprise, not sure why I was added in. I knew people didn't like me, but I hadn't thought my brother had picked up on it yet.

"I just want to be strong."

Shikamaru gave me an odd look.

'**_Ah...that's right. This one thinks girls need to be protected. You should fix that now, while you still can._**'

'_I can't do that..._'

_**'Well...doesn't his belief ruin your dream?'**_

"I have to protect my brothers, and everyone important to me."

"But...

"We should all protect each other. Everyone would be a lot safer if there was someone to protect them. Like a family."

Shikamaru blinked before he looked back up at the clouds, "I guess you're right...but family's troub'some."

"It is." Naruto and I said with matching grins.

"Troub'some."

"Akiko-chan...Naruto-kun," A voice called out. My brother and I looked away from Shikamaru, searching for the woman who had called for us.

I spotted Kiba-kun's mother, along with Kiba. Naru-nii leapt to his feet instantly taking off towards Kiba.

I got up lower and looked at Shikamaru, "It was nice to meet you."

He opened one eye and looked at me from the corner of it. He smiled, just a little bit...really, it was a slight smirk, but all in all...

"It...wasn' troub'some."

I smiled before taking after my brother, who was already rough-housing with Kiba-kun. I ignored them, since I didn't feel like beating them up yet. I walked up to Mama's friend.

"Hello." I chirped.

"So, kid. Where's Himawari?" Kiba-kun's mother asked.

"She's talking to Risa-san about something."

An odd look filtered across the Inuzuka's face. "Risa's back? Huh...I had thought...Ah. Never mind. When'll she be here?"

"In a few minutes." I answered, "She never leaves us alone for long."

The woman snickered. "She always was rather protective."

I stiffened, not liking the use of the word 'was', even though I knew it was properly used...just...saying Mama _was_ instead of Mama _is_ just didn't seem right.

"Aki!" I turned and saw Naruto dashing over to me with Kiba hot on his tail. Before I could move out of the way, my brother plowed straight into me, first sending both of us to the ground, and then Kiba, who tumbled over us.

"Ouch." I muttered, shoving them both off of me. I stood over the two, before a grin crossed me face.

"Heh heh...hey Aki-chan...you wouldn't hurt your little brother...would you?"

I didn't reply.

Kiba scrambled to his feet and darted away a bit. This left Naruto sitting before me. I leaned forward, and raised my hand.

Then...I flicked him on the forehead, like Itachi, and took off running shouting, "Naruto's 'It'!"

"HEY!"

* * *

_**So, there's this month's update! I've officially run out of pre-written chapters.**_

_**I'm really happy to finally show Risa. She's not overly important right now, but she'll be vital to future chapters. What do you guys think of her?**_

_**I noticed that Shikamaru was a poplar option in the poll, so I decided to introduce him to our lovely main characters. Of course, I'll be introducing most of the other options soon (except Haku and Gaara. Maybe Sai...)**_

_**Big thank you goes out to**_**mass-defect, xXMasqueradeOfVandettaXx, HesperideIsis, ShatteredRose212, Vaughn Tyler, _and a Guest for reviewing!_**

_**The poll stands at: **_

**_Shikamaru-27_**

**_Gaara-20_**

**_Haku-17_**

**_Neji-11_**

**_Sai-9_**

**_Kiba-9_**

**_Shino-5_**

**Don't forget to vote if you haven't already! You have up to four votes.**


	14. 13: Stories

**Chapter Thirteen: Stories**

"Who are we going to visit now?" I asked, swinging my hand, making Mama's hand swing as well. On her other side, my brother was doing the same.

Mama had an odd expression, as though she was lost far, far in the past.

"I need to speak with someone...I haven't seen him in years."

"Who is it?" Naruto asked, "Is he an awesome ninja?"

She scoffed, "He was. And then he wasn't."

My brother and I shared a look behind Mama's back. It wasn't often she sounded so angry without being in a fight.

i could practically see the rage rolling off of her in waves. She looked really tired, and I wondered briefly if it wouldn't be best for us to hold off the next visit until tomorrow, just so mama could rest.

In her condition, it wouldn't do for her to-

'**_You sound so old it isn't even funny._**'

'_Shuddap._'

She only snickered. I wondered if she had a name, but only for a moment. The last thing I wanted was for her to get a name. That would make her permanent. I didn't want a voice in my head.

As it was, I was likely in need of a visit to the Yamanaka clan. They had good psychologists...or so my voice said. I doubted it was true.

I refused to do what my voice told me I should do.

'**_I never said you should. But sure. Go ahead._**'

I ignored her. Something tugged at my hand. I looked up at Mama, and realized that I had stopped walking. Naru-nii looked confused, while mama gave me a bright smile that failed to reach her eyes.

Something was wrong...

Did she know I had voices in my head-

'**_Hey, there's only me. I wouldn't share with anyone else._**'

Well. that was comforting.

"Akiko, are you alright." I blinked, looking up, once again, at Mama.

I smiled sheepishly, "Sorry."

She smiled that sad smile again, Naruto looked at me funny again and we set off once more to meet...

"So...who are we meeting?"

"Right," Mama said with a scowl, "Kaoru."

Kaoru. That sounded familiar...wait...wasn't that Mama's other team mate?

"Oh wow! We're going to meet your old team mate?" I asked.

"So, how does the whole team-thingy go anyways?" Naru-nii asked, staring at Mama with an intense expression. He wanted to know everything about being a ninja.

Mama gave a conspiratorial smirk, "Sorry honey, but I'm not allowed to tell. You'll have to figure it out on you own."

"**_Team work~!_**"

The voice said, but it was almost like she was whispering it in my ear, and not speaking in my head. I ignored her and kept walking. We were heading for an apartment building on the cheaper side of town.

Mama entered the building and we climbed up three flights of stairs, before stopping in front of room number 23. Mama pounded on the door.

"Kaoru!"

There was a loud crash, along with some stumbling and cussing before the door swung open to reveal an older version of the boy in Mama's team photo. He mussed up his brown hair, which stood up in every angle, like he had only just gotten out of bed.

From the drowsy look in his blue eyes, he had. That and the only thing he was wearing was a pair of pajama pants.

"Yeah- HOLY- Himawari!?"

"Morning Kaoru. Or rather, afternoon." Mama said, gently pushing the man out of the way before she walked in, with us trailing after her.

Kaoru seemed to wake up when he spotted Naruto and I walking in with Mama.

"Is that...are they? What?"

"These are my children, Akiko and Naruto." Mama said as she cleared the kitchen table. It appeared to be more out of habit than anything. She barely seemed to register that she was cleaning his house.

The place was a dump, by the by. Clothes were tossed in every direction, empty food packages littered the floor, surrounded in what I think might have been mouse poop. From the number of sprung mousetraps littering the edges of the floors, it seemed like a good enough guess.

There was a mountain of dishes in the sink and on the counter, all of them glued together in Kami knows what -you know, I don't think even Kami DOES know. If I were a god, I'd still be afraid to look through the res of this place.

"Wait...Naruto...as in?"

"Yes. Just like the character in the book."

'Pffft. That was terrible. You know they're hiding something from you, right?'

"Wha? Oh yeah. Jiraiya's book. So...Akiko. She's...?"

"Not his. the least you could do is remember what happened back then."

Kaoru paused for a moment. If one listened hard enough, you could hear the sound of the rusty cogs in his brain, slowly turning. They screamed in what I personally believed was agony.

I leaned over to my brother, "**_His brain is going to break if he thinks any harder._**"

I know what they were talking about. I wasn't Papa's. My biological father was someone else. I had to be an idiot not to know. I didn't look anything like an Uchiha. I had ORANGE hair for crying out loud.

People always tried to dance around the subject, as though they expected me to cry or something. I didn't see how it mattered. Family wasn't about blood. It was about love.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

The visit with Kaoru was boring. From what I understood, Kaoru suffered a massive mental breakdown during the Kyuubi attack. His chakra system was damaged, and even though it was confirmed that he'd heal, he quit being a shinobi.

I didn't like him. He flinched whenever he saw Naruto. He was a scaredy-cat. A coward. How did one just up and quit when their job was to protect innocent people?! And the look in his eyes when he looked at Naru-nii and I.

It made a part of me very, very mad.

We left as soon as Mama possibly could. She just wanted to tell him she was dying.

It had almost been funny the way she said it.

_"So...Why are you even here?" Kaoru asked, staring at Mama._

_Mama looked up at him for a moment before she went back to cleaning the dishes. "I had something important to tell you."_

_"Oh. So...what is it?" He sounded kinda hopeful. I was almost curious as to why. But...ultimately, I couldn't bring myself to care._

_"I can't quite remember."_

_"Still spacing out, huh?"_

_"Sure. Spacing out." Mama said, almost smirking, like she was remembering, or thinking of something funny._

_The next ten minutes were tense and silent. Naruto and I played with a few rusty kunai I found under the table._

_"So...How are things?" Kaoru asked Mama._

_She shrugged, "Fine I guess. A bit boring. What with Fugaku trying to marry off my daughter, getting pregnant, dying. You know. The usual."_

_"Sounds rough- HOLY F-" A sharp look from Mama cut him off, "Frogs. I was gonna say frogs. Did...you just say you were?"_

_"I was what? Pregnant or dying?"_

_"BOTH!"_

"Now then...How about we go to Ichiraku and get some ramen?"

"RAMEN~!" Naruto and I said in sing-song voices, jumping slightly as we walked. Mama giggled. There was nothing like the food of the gods to make us all happy. Ramen was wonderful. I kinda wanted to start a Church of Ramen. I'm sure Naru-nii could love to join. Mama could be our figure-head, since she ate the most ramen in the village.

'**_I love ramen._**'

'_I know! It's wonderful and- I'm not supposed to talk to you. Go away._'

'**_Geez. It's not like I'm telling you to kill your family or anything...although..._**'

I quickly ignored the voice, instead, I focused on the ramen stand that was now in sight.

We practically ran the rest of the way to the establishment. Mama took a stool to my left, Naruto to my right, and me plopped right in the middle.

"Nice to see you three again." Teuchi said, beaming. We were his best customers.

"Hello Teuchi-san!" We all chorused. It was fun. Some people around the room turned to look at us. A few glared at my brother, but the rest seemed surprised and...a little creeped out.

It was the usual crowd from the looks of things.

We all ordered and the ramen-man went into the kitchen. The three of us talked for a while. There was a festival coming up. Mama wanted us all to go, since it was Naru-nii's first festival with us.

I knew it was also because it would be Mama's last. If she lived until the next year, she'd probably be too weak to go anyways.

Mama also asked when we wanted to go to the academy. She thought six would be a good age, but we didn't. Four would be better. We could always flunk the graduation test a few times, if we actually had a chance at passing.

We wanted to start training already.

We decided to wait a while, after we came to realize that if we went to the academy, then we'd miss more time with Mama. She could still train us...for a while longer.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

I couldn't sleep. It was late. I'd already woken up a number of times, and the training I did had done nothing to tire me.

I padded down the hall, careful to move the chakra to my feet, so I could move silently.

"Akiko."

I nearly cried out, completely startled by the call. I spun around to see Mama standing by her bedroom door. She looked...Sad. Lonely. Somewhat guilty.

I walked over to her. She placed a hand on my head and gently ruffled my hair. In the darkness of the hall, it looked very dark.

"Come here." I followed her into her room and climbed up onto the bed with her. Mama held me tight and smiled.

"What's up?" I asked her, tilting my head back to I could see her.

"I want to tell you a story."

"Is it a sad one?" Her face had already told me it was. I just felt the need to ask. Everything seemed sad now-a-days. Of course there were lots of highlights.

"Yes. I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

"In another world, far from here, two boys were born. They were identical twins. They both had red, red hair-"

"How red?" I couldn't help but ask. Was it red like mine was in the dark, or was it red like a tomato?

Mama lifted a hand and pointed to her markings, which were the exact shade of blood. Fresh blood.

She continued. "One of the boys had eyes so dark it was hard to tell what colour they were, but his brother had eyes that were a deep, deep blue-"

"Like yours?" I asked, cutting her off again.

She nodded smiling in a proud way, but it was also sad.

"The town they were raised in didn't like the boys. The boys had scary parents who came to the island from the sea. No one was sure who they were. One boy liked to cause all sorts of trouble. He was the youngest, his name was...Let's call him Minato. The older brother was a very stiff boy. he never got in trouble and he tried to keep 'Minato' in line. We'll call him...Itachi."

That suited him. Itachi-nii was very stiff, and he was always stopping Sasuke, Nari-nii and I from doing things.

"Anyways, one day 'Minato' and 'Itachi', along with their parents had to leave their town and go across the sea to an island. The boy lived their for many years. One day 'Minato' decided he wanted to leave the island with a crew of pirates-"

"What's a pirate?"

"They're like missing-nin, or bandits of the seas...although they don't like being called that."

"So...there were ninjas there too?"

"Sort of. They were called Marines."

"Oh."

"So, 'Minato' left, even when his brother begged him not to leave. The crew 'Minato' joined was very infamous...he never saw his brother again. 'Itachi' grew up on the island, and was very happy. One day, a beautiful lady washed up on the shore. 'Itachi' saved her. He fell in love the moment she opened her eyes. We'll call her...Ayame. So, 'Itachi' and 'Ayame got married and they left the island to live somewhere far from pirates. They had a pretty little girl, who had red, red hair and green eyes, just like her Mama's. When the little girl...we'll call her 'Akiko', was still young, they all moved to another island, because 'Itachi' had decided to become a Marine. 'Itachi', 'Ayame' and 'Akiko' were very happy, but suddenly very bad pirates came to the island. Because 'Itachi' a Marine, the pirates hunted him down. They came into his house...and 'Itachi' wasn't strong enough to fight them all. He and 'Ayame' died."

I shuddered, staring at Mama, who looked sadder than I was.

"What about Akiko?!" I asked, worried about the other little girl.

Mama smiled, "She lived. She got very strong after that."

"Oh. Okay." I said, relaxing.

"When Ja- When 'Itachi' opened his eyes again-"

"I though he was dead."

Mama continued on without answering me, "He was in a strange place. His name wasn't 'Itachi' anymore. He was a little blond girl named Hi- Named Hana."

Oh. So the older brother died, and he was reborn somewhere else as another person? That...I don't know. I didn't really question it. It made sense to me. Lots of sense.

* * *

_**A big thanks goes out to Anber, chloemika, nafara, and HesperideIsis for reviewing!**_

_**Please continue to tell me what you think! Everyone's opinion if appreciated.**_

_**The Poll now stands at:**_

Shikamaru-34

Gaara-31

Haku-20

Neji-19

Sai-13

Kiba-12

Shino-8

_**Don't forget to vote in the poll! This will decided Akiko's future boyfriend!**_

**_Lemme know if you recognize the story Himawari told Akiko._**


	15. 14: Sammy

**Fourteen: Sammy**

**_'Huh. She's really pretty. I mean, she's pretty all the time but...woah. You know?'_**

I couldn't help but agree. Mama twirled around, showing me the ceremonial kimono she would wear to her wedding. It wasn't pure white, like I expected a bride's outfit would be. Part of me expected a long, flowing gown.

Instead, the off-white kimono had a ring of red diamonds around the sleeves, and a pair of blue Saisei markings that started at the shoulders and ended where the obi began. The obi was the same shade of blue, but there were faint markings of what looked like waves across the blue fabric.

The colouring reminded me of the story Mama had told me weeks before, about 'Itachi' the marine, with his blue eyes and red hair. I asked Mama if I would wear the same kimono when I got married, but she said I'd have to change the colours to brown and get a different pattern for the obi. I was disappointed, but not at the same time.

It sounded like my wedding kimono would be very dull, but somehow the colours seemed comfortable. The right colours for me. As for the pattern on my obi...I think...I'd like leaves...leaves that have fallen in autumn.

Mama looking incredibly happy. She had this smile that was so big it made Naruto's look so half as- Right...not supposed to use those words... It made it look like Naru-nii was always sad.

She didn't look as she had for the past couple weeks. Her cheeks were red again, and her eyes were shining like they used to. Still...I sometimes saw her leaning against a wall, holding her stomach protectively and breathing heavily, like something heavy was on her chest, stopping her lungs from filling up.

When I had come in to visit her, while she was still putting her kimono on...I saw a scar on the back of her neck, from some sort of senbon or something...and flowing out of the scar, there were thick black veins.

They were spreading down her neck and back, across her shoulders and around the beginnings of her arms.

I nearly gasped when I saw it, but something stopped me. I didn't make a sound. Instead, I smiled brightly and skipped towards her, like I had been before I saw the poison that was slowly creeping across her skin.

"What do you think?"

"You're really, really pretty! I wanna look like you on my wedding!" I exclaimed, grinning. I paused for a moment, "Unless I'm marrying Sasuke. In that case I'll just do it in pajamas. That'll show Fugaku."

Mama let out a snort, quickly covering her face, "Oh my...I'd just love to see that!"

There was an uncomfortable silence.

The door creaked open and Aunt Mikoto peaked in. She let out a squeal when she saw Mama. The awkward silence had just been punched in the face.

**_'I don't know why you're so upset about her dying.'_**

_'HOW THE HELL COULD YOU SAY THAT?!'_

**_'Because. It's not like she'll be gone forever.'_**

_'Of course she will! She'll be...dead.'_

**_'There's a lot for you to learn.'_**

"Akiko-chan, is something wrong?" I snapped to attention, looking up at Mikoto's concerned face. I smiled and shook my head.

She turned back to my mother, "Its almost time."

Mama fidgeted nervously. Aw...she's so cute when she's nervous!

Mikoto was Mama's maid of honour, and I had duty as the Flower-girl. My job was to throw sunflower petals everywhere. Mama and Kaito thought it would be funny to use petals from Mama's namesake. i thought it was adorable.

The bridesmaids were all from different clans...Kiba's mama, an Aburame, Shikamaru-kun's mama, and I think one of them was a Hyuuga. The final one was Risa-sensei.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

I watched Mama walk down the aisle with a strange looking man, who had long white hair. He had two red markings that started under his eyes and ran all the way down to his jaw.

**_'Holy F- Frick. How? He's...he isn't supposed to be here!'_**

_'Who is he...Wait...'_ An image flashed through my mind. It was from a nightmare I had once had._ 'Why the heck is the Toad Sage walking my mother down the aisle?'_

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Naruto-nii and I sat on the couch, staring at the man who sat on another couch across from us. Mama and Dad, as Kaito was now called, were on something called a Honeymoon, so Mama had arranged for him to watch us for the next couple days.

I wondered how they kept the moon in the sky, if it was made of honey...where were all the bees?

"Hey! Who are you? Huh? Huh?" My brother asked Jiraiya. In my mind, the voice was ranting away on how wrong this was. Something about Naruto not meeting him until the Chuunin exams. I didn't get it, so I ignored her. She was crazy anyways. And I was mad at her.

"The name's Jiraiya! I'm sure you've heard of me...I'm one of the legendary sannin-" I had to cut him off, before he said anything bad...like introducing himself as a self-proclaimed 'super pervert'. I wasn't sure what a pervert was, but the Voice said it was bad.

"Why are you here?"

"Your mom asked me to walk her down the aisle. So what're your na-"

"What's your relation to our Mama?" I leaned forward, putting on my best T&amp;I expression. I was still working on it...so it wasn't perfect...It made Shisui-niisan laugh. Then he got concerned about how I knew about T&amp;I when I was so young. I wasn't sure.

My brother glanced at me before mimicking me. We both stared at the man intensely.

"Hey, hey! I'm just an old friend."

"Oh!" We said cheerfully. He seemed thrown off by our sudden change, and a bit disturbed by our synchronized response.

"That's alright then." Naru-nii said, nodding to himself.

"I'm Uchiha Akiko . One day, I'm going to be waaaay stronger than you and the other sannin, understood?"

He chuckled, but as he turned to my brother, Naruto started up. He got to his feet and pointed accusingly at the man.

"Hey, don't laugh! Akiko's gonna be so strong she can kick your ass- Butt any day!" My brow furrowed. Where'd he learn that word? It...was probably me...but if it wasn't...then who the hell was swearing in front of my brother?!

"Alright, alright! Calm down, gaki." Jiraiya made motions with his hands, gesturing for my brother to calm down, "I believe you."

"Good." I said. My brother nodded.

"Now then. I'M UZUMAKI-SAISEI NARUTO AND I'M GONNA BE HOKAGE SOME DAY! DATTEBAYO!"

The man looked...a little sad hearing that. And not all that impressed.

"So you better remember our names, got it?" We asked.

We'd been wondering how to introduce ourselves to new people, so they'd take us seriously. I was a bit surprised, and touched, that he called himself Uzumaki-Saisei...I really wanted to hug him, but that would ruin our image.

Naruto and I peppered the man with questions about being ninjas, but eventually, my brother needed to go to the bathroom. I was left alone with the sannin.

"So...Jiraiya-san...why do you look so sad?"

"What? I'm not sad, gaki." He showed me a happy smile. I scoffed, sounding every bit like the Uchiha I was.

**_'Ask him about Naruto's family.'_**

"You were. Did you know Naru-nii's old parents?"

He stiffened. I could only assume that he was thrown off guard. I was three years old...although now that I thought about it...I was nearly four now. Soon it'd be my birthday! Anyways, I was a three year old, who had managed to get right to the source...it did help that the Voice was older. She was good at this question thing.

"Yeah..."

**_'It's confidential, so he can't tell you who they were.'_**

_'But what if they're still alive?'_

**_'They aren't. They died the day Naruto was born.'_**

"But...you can't tell me who they are...right? Its...confidential."

He nodded, and we both stopped talking. He was staring at me, with that weird sharp look that all the ninjas had...Like he was seeing beneath the underneath! Ninjas were super observatory...

I wondered if he could tell I was crazy.

**_'Do you think...we should warn him?'_**

_'About what?'_

**_'That he's going to die. You remember that nightmare, right?'_**

_'But that was just a nightmare. They don't some true!'_

**_"Some of them do."_** She was doing that weird 'I'm in you head but speaking outside if it' thing again.

_'What's that supposed to mean?'_

She didn't answer me. I looked at the ground, gripping the black fabric of my ninja pants at the knees. I finally worked up the courage to speak. If there was a chance for my nightmares to happen...I had to stop them.

"Jiraiya-san...if I told you something really, really bad was going to happen would you-"

I stopped talking as my brother ran into the room, "Hey Aki! There's a bunch of losers at the door!"

I snickered, getting to my feet and running after him to the front door. From the window beside the door, which was tightly locked, I could see a bunch of sour-puss Uchiha's at the door. One man was pounding on the door.

"COME OUT HERE YOU BRATS!" He shouted. Jiraiya-san walked into the entree-way where we were standing.

"WHY?!" We asked loudly, motioning for Jiraiya-san to be quiet.

"We have candy?"

**_"Bullshit."_** Naru-nii shouted in Sammy, "You're all liars!"

"LIAR LIAR! PANTS ON FIRE!" I shouted, before my brother and I dispersed into giggles.

Jiraiya-san looked at us in confusion, before he moved to the door. My brother and I darted away from the door and hid behind him as he swung the door open.

The people waiting outside froze in shock.

It was common knowledge in my family that the clan was not pleased with Kaito's decision to marry Mama, and they still hated Naru-nii and me, but they hadn't done anything like this in a while.

My guess was that this was a last attempt, but they must have forgotten that Mama and Kaito were going on a honeymoon.

A few moments later, the group outside were running away, and Naruto was staring at Jiraiya like he was an idol. I giggled as I listened to Naru-nii asking Jiraiya a million questions, firing them off at a mile a minute.

I decided to slip off and train in the back yard. It wasn't really training, but I ran a few laps and did some push ups and things. When I began to get sore, I stopped and began to play with the chakra dancing under my skin.

I focused on the warm feeling of the energy in the center of my body. I closed my eyes and pulled at the mass. It could take some time before it wanted to work with me. Eventually I got some of it to flow to my fingers.

I willed it to the pointer finger of my left hand and tried to force it out of my body. Risa had done the same and she got a chakra string so...I could do it, right?

I spent a good hour staring at me hand, looking sick while I tried to get the chakra out of my hand. I felt even more tired, compared to before when I had only been working out.

"C'mon." I said in Sammy, feeling frustrated. I wanted this to work.

"Gaki, what are you doing?"

I let out a screech and popped to my feet. The chakra fled my hand and went back to my core, much to my annoyance. I could tell it would take a while to get it back.

I spun around to glare up at the man, although at my age I knew it was more of a pout, "I was training."

"You looked constipated."

"What's constipated?" I asked, ignoring the way the Voice was laughing hysterically.

"Never mind." He said quickly. Ah, so it was a big person word...I think. Or I just wasn't supposed to know what it was...or he didn't want to tell me. Itachi-oniisan had the same look when I asked him what sex was.

"Alright." I said, shrugging.

"So, what were you doing?"

"Trying to make chakra strings." I said, pouting, "But my stupid chakra didn't want to leave my hand...do you know where Naru-nii is? I think its time for meditaion..."

"Why are you meditating?" He asked, with that sharp look again.

"I read that meditation helps with charka control and it helps grow your reserves. Right? Mama says I'll have imbalanced chakra, because our clan has naturally high spiritual chakra...so we have to work really hard physically. Naru-nii is gonna have lots of chakra...so he needs to start learning to focus it now."

"And she knows you're manipulating it to your hands already?"

"Um...I dunno." I said with a troubled expression and shrugged.

"What else have you been working on?" He asked, sitting in the grass.

"Well...Mama has us working on katas every day, and sometimes we have slow-motion spars. I sometimes do blind training...I usually end up getting lots of bruises from that...but I can sometimes avoid trees now! And...I can make leaves stick to my fingers? Oh...and I stole Itachi's walk."

Jiraiya-san seemed to be taking in what I said. The ninja look was still there.

"What do you mean by Itachi's walk?"

I stood up and walked around a bit, not making a single sound in the grass, "I copied the way he walks, so now I don't make a lot of noise when I walk...sometimes if I meditate for a reallllllly long time first, I can get chakra to my feet, but they end up really sore after that...and it doesn't last long. When I do that though, I don't make any noise at all!"

He nodded. I glanced behind him, and saw my brother sneaking up behind him, using Itachi's walk, which I had shown to him as soon as I figured it out. Sometimes Naruto was a bit of a clutz and messed it up, but so far he was doing fine.

"I also taught my brother!" I said, grinning, just before Naru-nii pounced on Jiraiya-san's back.

The old man didn't look nearly as surprised as I'd have liked...he must have...

**_'He sensed his chakra. Naruto has a crazy amount of it.'_** The Voice supplied.

_'How do I fix that?'_ It would really help Naruto later if he could hide his chakra. AND it would make pranking a lot easier...no wonder people keep finding us.

**_'I don't know...try asking you older brother.'_**

_'Got it.'_

"I see. So...gakis. What do you want for dinner?"

Naru-nii and I shared massive grins, "RAMEN~!"

The man sighed like he had expected, and that sad look flashed across his face. So...one or both of Naru-nii's old parents liked ramen? Interesting. Maybe ramen loving was hereditary?

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Naruto-nii and I listened as Jiraiya snuck out of the house. We debated on whether or not we should follow him. Naruto didn't trust him. Voice told me to, but I wasn't sure I should even trust Voice...we decided not to. It was too risky to go out there.

_**'Hey kid, do me a favor and focus your chakra on your markings.'**_

I blinked, but continued to stare up at the cieling of our room. Beside me, Naru-nii shifted restlessly as he tried to sleep.

_'Why?'_

**_'Because I wanna try something!'_**

I frowned but decided to trust her. I felt for the tingling ball of chakra in my stomach and pulled at it, slowly dragging it up to the two red-brown markings over my eyes.

The room suddenly warped until I found myself outside on a sunny autumn day, sitting on a park bench. I blinked, trying to chase the image away. Nothing happened, and I felt my heart start to race.

I didn't know where I was and it was really scary. I felt my eyes begin to tear up, but before I could even start, a voice called out. A very familiar voice.

**"Hey, hey. None of that. It's fine...just...don't panic okay?" **

If anything, Voice sounded more panicked than I was. Oddly enough, she wasn't speaking Sammy like she normally would.

I looked ahead, to see a girl standing in front of me. She looked a lot older than I was...in her late teens from the looks of things. Voice had long brown hair, that in the fall sunlight looked more red than anything. What startled me was how similar we looked. She had the same brown eyes as me, and while she was much older, we had similar facial structure...

If I didn't know any better...I would have said she was an older at her, I'd say my face was more a mix between her and Mama's.

She smiled at me nervously, **"You...aren't gonna start crying, right? I hate it when kids cry..."**

I shook my head slowly, still taking everything in. She was dressed in strange clothing...though I knew what they were. Voice wore a black T-shirt with the kanji for shinobi in white over the chest. She had worn looking blue jeans and a pair of fading red running shoes.

We were in a park, with a large field and walkways in the distance...there were large maple trees that had bright red and orange leaves, which gently drifted to the green grass from time to time.

Behind me, there was what looked like a street, but it continued on forever and ever, without a real end in sight. The other side of street was lined with smaller maple trees, and apartment buildings. Oddly enough, there were no balconies for the apartments above ground level...they only had doors that seemed to float there. If someone were to step out, they'd drop like a rock in a pond.

Each door was different in some way...but from what I could see, only one was open. The door was a light blue colour, and it was located directly across the street from where I stood.

"Where am I?"

**"Your mind."**

My mind? I glanced around the park. A leaf drifted to the ground nearby, and I saw an image flash across the surface...a memory of the ceremony. When I tripped Fugaku as we all filed out.

"Why am I here? And who are you anyways?!"

**"Finally you ask...I wanted to meet ya face to face. There's nothing wrong with that, right? Anyways...my name was Sam...but most people called me Sammy."**

I froze. That...What?! Sammy...but that was the name of my secret language!...Which the voice spoke in.

"Why are you in my head?"

**"Why is anyone in anyone's head?"** She muttered, before speaking more clearly, **"That'll be explained later. You're too young still...and No, I'm not on the Baby Body side. Or the Prune Person side."**

I sighed, disappointed she had stopped the question, but I continued on, "Why are there so many doors?"

**"Ah. Those doors lead to other people's mindscapes...That door over there, the open one?"** She gestured behind me, to what I knew was the blue door. I was skeptical and confused about what she meant about the doors leading to other people's minds...that sounded invasive and dangerous...and impossible.

"Yeah?"

**"That leads to your mom's mind."**

I stared at her in disbelief.

**"It's true. She's in there right now, talking with Jack."**

"Who's he?"

**"Can't tell ya..."** She said with a knowing look, before she looked back at the building's behind me, **"Your mother's pregnant, eh?"**

"Yes..."

**"Well...a couple months back, two new doors appeared. Do you see the swirly one, and the purple striped one?"**

I looked back to see what she was talking about. I took notice of the doors on either side of the blue one that apparently lead to Mama. That was odd about them, was that they were only partially painted, like someone had stopped halfway through.

**"Those are your new siblings."**

"Siblings?" I asked, tilting my head.

**"Yup. She's having twins~!"**

"Why aren't their doors done? And why is Mama's door the only open one? Why are there doors leading to other people's head IN MY MIND!?"

She snickered, **"Zen, my little friend. Their doors aren't done because THEY aren't done...they don't have completed mindscapes to go into. You're mom can explain it to you when she and Kaito get back from their vacation. Actually...she can explain all of it."**

"But...I wanna know now! you can't just bring me here and then not tell me anything!"

**"I can. Sorry kid. Besides...your mother would pitch a fit...she gets mad enough with me for your bad dreams, and those aren't my fault! I can't help it if you unconsciously snoop at night..."**

"What?" Did that mean that Mama already knew that there was a voice- or a girl- in my head, who was always talking to me?

**"Ah, nevermind."**

"So I have to wait until Mama gets back...and then I can ask her all I want?"

**"Yep! And we can have a great big party with her and Jack."**

"Um...why can't I just go over to her mind now?"

Sammy paused, but then sighed and plopped down beside me, **"It's not polite. You can't just barge into someone's mind without asking first. In person! You can't knock on the door and ask...Holy cow I sound like Jaaaaack..."**

I sent Sammy an unimpressed look. She ducked her head slightly, but grinned. In a way, she reminded me of my brother at that moment...not Itachi-oniisan...OR Sasuke-nii. Naruto-nii.

**"Sorry."**

"It's okay...you kinda remind me of Naru-nii."

**"He's a cute kid, eh?"**

"Yeah. Do you have any siblings?"

A strange look crossed her face, and I was hit with this overwhelming feeling of sorrow, like it was me feeling it...but I wasn't sure why. Sammy was the one who looked sad...but she looked happy as well. Incredibly happy.

**"Yeah...I had two little brothers."**

"Had? What happened to them?"

The sadness pressed even harder at me, intensifying until I felt tears welling up in my eyes. Sammy looked ready to cry, but she was still smiling, **"It's not what happened to them...it's what happened to me."**

"What do you mean?"

**"I...I think you should go back...you need the proper rest...I'll see you in a few days."**

I blinked, surprised by the sudden change in topic. In that instant, my mindscape became a negative image...with everything in black, and the only way to discern one thing from the next were thin, white lines. Then, there was the sound of a loud BANG and I found myself in the real world again.

Something about that sound...scared me.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

"Sasuke!" I called before tackling my brother. We tumbled to the ground, and Sasuke grumbled.

"Why'd you do that?"

"Naru-nii and I wanted to know if you wanted to go training!" I said, "Or go play at the park."

He sighed, "No. I'm gonna ask Itachi to play with me..."

"Oh." Feeling rejected, I slowly got off of Sasuke and pulled on a smile, "Alright."

"M-Maybe later...I mean...nii-san never has time to play with me...so he probably won't now..."

I shrugged, "It's fine. You should spend more time with Itachi-oniisan."

_'Because...we won't have much more time with him...and he was your big bro first.'_ I didn't say it though.

_**'Something...is wrong with that.'**_

_'What?'_

_**'I should have noticed it before but...Itachi doesn't join ANBU for another few years...'**_

_'How would you know that? Why wouldn't Itachi-oniisan be in ANBU?'_

_**''ll tell you later...let's go find your brother and the pervert.'**_

_'What's a pervert?'_

**_'Never mind.'_**

I pouted, somewhat confused before going back to my house, where Jiraiya and Naruto were waiting.

"Where's Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"He wanted to go hang out with Itachi...but he might come hang out with us later..."

"Oh."

"Alright, brats, where are we going?" Jiraiya asked.

"Park." Naru-nii and i said in sync, grinning.

Jiraiya seemed disappointed. I wondered why, but Sammy spoke up.

_**'I bet he wanted to go to a bath house...'**_

_'Eh? Why? Does he like having baths?'_

_**'Something like that.'**_

I shrugged to myself and skipped along, grasping my brother's hand in my own. We left Jiraiya trailing after us with a sigh.

When we reached the park, I was delighted to see Sakura-chan was there. We called over to her excitedly, noticing her mother wasn't there. Her head shot up from the flower chain she was making and she smiled shyly.

Ditching Jiraiya we went over to her. I glanced back and spotted him talking to a pretty woman, who looked kinda...annoyed. Oh well.

"Hello Sakura-chan! We haven't seen you in a while."

"Sorry. My mom's been trying to teach me proper etiquette. I haven't had time to play..."

My brother and I gasped, before I quickly hugged her, "Oh you poor thing..not being able to play..."

Sakura just sat there. I giggled at the look she gave me and let go before flopping onto my back and staring up at the cloudy sky. It looked like it would rain later. Hopefully not while we were here.

"Guess what?"

"What?" Sakura asked.

"Our Mama got married yesterday and, and, and...WE'RE GONNA BE OLDER SIBLINGS!"

"NO WAY!" She squealed excitedly.

"Yup!" I said, grinning. Beside me, Naruto was doing the same.

"I hope it's a girl." I said, not mentioning that Sammy said there were two, just as my brother spoke.

"I hope it's a boy."

Naruto and I looked at each other. He narrowed his eyes.

"Why'd you want a girl!?" Was it me, or did he sound worried?

"Because I'm surrounded by boys!"

"That's not true! There's Mama and Aunt Mikoto!"

"So? There's Fugaku, Itachi, Shisui, Sasuke, and Dad!"

"That's only..." He started counting on his fingers, "Four!"

"Five." I sighed, "Five Naruto...not four. And there's only two girls. I want a little sister. You know, someone I can be a girl with...like brushing hair and putting on pretty clothes. You don't like that stuff right? Well most boys don't and just because I like to train and fight, doesn't mean I'm not a girl too ya know."

"Gah...fine. I hope it's a girl too." He huffed, pouting slightly. Sakura and I giggled. His face turned red. Isn't my brother adorable?

"Um...Akiko-chan?" Sakura asked. I looked over to her and she continued, "Could...you and Naruto show me some of those moves you two were using when we played ninja? I w-went to the library to try and find them...but the man at the desk said I wasn't allowed to read them 'til I was in the academy."

Naru-nii and I shared a look before nodding happily. I popped up to my feet and pulled both of them up with me.

"Of course we will! We're gonna be comrads right? If we can help you get stronger now, you'll be even stronger later! Then, we won't worry about you when you go on missions."

She nodded and the three of us eagerly began training. For the most part, it was just us moving in slow motion to show her how to move. It was fun though.

When we stopped, the three of us were tired and decided to sit back down in the grass. Sakura found a bunch of white flowers and before I knew it, they were being weaved into my hair. They really stood out against the colour of my hair.

We looked up when we noticed a boy close to our age walk up to us. There was something strange about him, but I pressed it to the back of my mind. I also ignored the discomfort I felt coming from Sammy.

"Hello..." I said cheerfully.

"Are you ninjas?" He asked, giving us a large smile. I...didn't like it though.

"Not right now, but someday, I'm gonna be Hokage!" Naruto said, leaping up, as though he hadn't been tired moments before. "And Aki and Sakura are gonna be super strong too!"

I giggled. It was nice that he added us.

"I have a friend who helps me train sometimes...he might help you three too."

If Iwere an animal, my hackles would have raised. Sammy seemed confused and alarmed as well, but I wasn't sure what she was thinking.

**_'IneedtotalktoJackthiscan'tbehappeningwhyishehereheisn'tsupposedtoshowupuntilposttimeskiphe'snotevenoldenoughishe'_**

With her panicking so much, I was having trouble thinking straight. I was aware that Sakura had scooted closer to me, and was looking down shyly, "My Mom says I should never speak to strangers."

"But...you're talking to me." He said.

"But you're a kid...Mom says strange adults are dangerous..."

"Does she now. Huh." The boy said, "I take it you're all too scared to try real training?"

I narrowed my eyes at him, "Our Mama is a retired Kunoichi. I'm quite sure she knows how to train us."

But my brother was looking unsure, "But Aki...what if this guy is really good?"

"He is. My friend is a very skilled shinobi. Very important...I'm sure you'll become very strong if you come with him. He may even be able to make you Hokage..."

I wasn't aware that I was speaking until the words had left my mouth, "You're broken though. If we go...will he break us as well?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Akiko-chan."

Sammy began to panic even more. I wasn't sure why though.

"I believe you do. You're broken...I can tell from your smile and the way you talk...are you empty? Did he hollow you out, and leave nothing but a shell?"

"I'm not hollow." He said, still smiling, like everything we were saying was just a joke. But it wasn't...he was broken! Busted...chipped and cracked and he needed one hell of a restoration artist.

"Do you even remember your name?"

He went to speak but before he could, another boy began to approach. He had glasses...and grey hair.

I got to my feet and grabbed Naru-nii's and Sakura-chan's hands, "Oh gosh! I think I hear Uncle calling us...we better go see what he wants!"

I yanked the others along behind me as I tried not to freak out completely. Sammy was beginning to calm down enough that I could understand what she was saying, _**'What the hell is happening? He wasn't supposed to approach until the exams...Hurry to Jiraiya.'**_

We rushed to the bench that Jiraiya was sitting at. He looked like he'djust been rejected...and the hand-print on his face kinda said it all. Although that was Sammy's thinking...I didn't get it.

Still, we all climbed up onto the bench with him. I glanced back to see if they were following us. I noticed the older boy, the one with the glasses, leaning against a tree, much further away than he had been before.

"What's the matter with you three?"

I stared up at Jiraiya and forced on a smile, "I...I remembered something from a very, very bad dream...and I didn't want to stay there anymore."

An obvious lie...but not at the same time...It felt like one of my dreams...I knew those boys' faces, but I couldn't remember where.

"Gaki, why don't you and your girlfriend go play on the swings for a bit?"

They nodded, but before they could leave I quickly said, "And don't talk to any strangers!"

Jiraiya-san, Naru-nii and Sakura-chan sent me odd looks, but my brother and friend left anyways.

"What's the matter, Gaki?"

"A boy came up to us...but he was broken..."

"Hm?"

"There was something wrong about him...he had a dead smile...but...he reminded me of a really bad dream...I don't know how but it just scared me-"

"What was the dream about?"

"Um...Well...There's a great big tree and lots of people live in it. There's a big family in the tree and each member has two pretty red rocks. But there's a man hiding in the roots who wants the red rocks to himself. He also wants the tree all to himself too, instead of the monkey who lives in the highest branches, so he finds a boy who has a pair of red rocks. This boy really loves the tree and his family...but the man in the roots fools him into killing the other people with red stones...saying they wish to kill the tree...and then he collects all the red rocks for himself. and the boy is all alone...except he can't kill one person who owns the red rocks...his little brother...so the boy who loved the tree left the tree because he wanted his brother to be safe there."

The toad-man stared at me for a while and then sighed, "So...why did the boy in the park remind you of his dream?"

"Because the Old man in the roots had many servants...many roots...and to be a root...you have to be dead on the inside."

Jiraiya-san seemed to be deep in thought, clearly worrying about something.

"And there was another boy with him...he was once among the Roots, but he was swallowed by a snake...and was poisoned in his mind. He serves the snake, and lives in the tree to keep a eye on all the people in its branches."

I paused before I continued.

"Both the snake and man in the roots steal away those with potential."

"Is that why you won't look away from Naruto for even a moment?"

I nodded, "Naruto is the most important person in the universe. He and Sasuke-nii. I won't let anyone hurt them."

I felt Jiraiya's eyes on me as I watched Naru-nii and Sakura-chan on the swings.

"You're all becoming ninja though, aren't you? How can you protect them if they're actively going into danger?"

I smirked at that, "I'll just have to be stronger than any threat that we meet...and I'll make sure they are stronger than any threat they face without me."

"Good luck with that, kid."

I ignored his tone, which clearly told me he doubted it.

What did he know?

"But...don't worry about those two boys. As long as Himawari left me in charge of you two...I won't let anything happen." It actually helped hearing him say that.

_**'TAKE THAT HELMET!'**_ I didn't even want to know. **_'YOU AIN'T GETTIN' MY GIRL!'_**

I glanced at him as I got off the bench, "Good luck with that, pervert."

Hearing a loud "OI!", I skipped away and joined my brother and only girl friend.

Just as I reached them, a thought hit me. I realized what the boy had said that bothered me. Naruto had only called me Aki. But...

He knew my name.

* * *

_**TA-DA~! So, we've finally met Sammy and we now know that there are twins on the way! I can't wait to introduce them...Moving on...**_

_**Thank You goes out to: cascioli, Guest, NeitherSaneNorInsane, Chloemika, milpld, ArtermisKirara7, Guest, Littlevbigdreams, and Anber for reviewing!**_

_**And yes, the story Himawari told was about One Piece, but it was most references to my fic for One Piece, Cheshire Grin. More Specifically 'Itachi'...although his name isn't actually that. You'll learn more about that in the next chapter, so no worries! And this isn't a cross-over, if anyone was wondering. **_

_**Please remember to review and tell me what ya think~! Even if you wanna tell my its terrible, I don't mind.**_

_**The Poll Now Stands At:**_

_**Shikamaru: 48**_

_**Gaara: 42**_

_**Neji: 24**_

_**Haku: 24**_

_**Sai: 21**_

_**Kiba: 14**_

_**Shino: 11**_

_**Please remember to vote at the poll if you haven't already~! You get up to four selections OR if you really want to, review/PM if ya wanna vote for someone more than once.**_

_**Until next time~!**_


	16. 15: Getting Older

**Fifteen: Getting Older**

Mama and Dad came home a few days afterwards, and almost instantly, my Mama had pulled Naruto and I into a bone-crushing hug.

**"I was so worried." **She said. I froze and stared at her in shock. Naruto also stared at her. She had spoken my language...fluently.

**"H-How did you?!"**

**"Sammy." **I relaxed, but Naruto looked more confused than ever. I felt bad...but I never told him about her. I didn't want him to think I was weird.

Well, weirder than he already did.

"There you are." A voice called, we all looked up to see Kai- Dad, standing in the doorway, with a typical Uchiha smirk, but his was slightly warmer.

Sammy approved of him, and I did too. It was a bit odd that just by meeting her once, I suddenly changed from not trusting her, to depending on her words.

Somehow, I knew she was knowledgeable on a lot of things. Some of them seemed impossible, but I was willing to believe in her.

Naruto and I tackled Dad. It was kinda awkward, since we didn't do this with him often, but he seemed happy enough with it. I still didn't know a lot about Kaito, even though he was now married to Mama. He didn't talk a lot, but that was an Uchiha thing, so I let it be. He treated my brother like he was a normal kid, he didn't sneer at me or call me bad things, and Mama trusted him, so it was good enough for me.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

I was back in the Autumn Park, with Sammy sprawled out in the grass by my bench. She glanced up as I arrived and she seemed to bounce to life.

_**"Finally! Do you realize how boring it can get here!?" **_She asked me, before she shook her head and grabbed my hand,_** "C'mon, let's go see Himawari and Jack!"**_

I nodded and let her drag me away from the park. As we reached the street, I took a moment to look at the wall of doors. Mama's door was the only one open. The twins' doors were still unfinished, and the doors directly above theirs caught my attention.

They were chained and padlocked, the words** 'STAY OUT'** written boldly over them in what looked like permanent marker. One door was made of a thick looking metal, and water appeared to be leaking out from under it, dripping out and around the door below it. The other door was a traditional sliding door, which looked so thin it shouldn't have been able to handle the weight of the chains wrapped around it.

_**"We aren't allowed in those. Don't even think about asking about them."**_

I pouted, but looked away from them and towards Mama's door. Now that I got a closer look, I realized that there were thin veins of black crisscrossing the blue surface, like the poison running down Mama's back.

Sammy raised her hand and knocked on the door excitedly, sounding more like a wood-pecker than someone asking for entrance.

The door opened and Mama's head poked through the opening. Behind her I could see a cloudless blue sky, and she appeared to be standing on a wooden floor of some sort. The sound of water splashing against something filled the air, but it wasn't loud enough to cover up the sound of birds calling from the park behind me.

"There you two are. Come in." She beamed cheerfully, "JACK!" She shouted as she went back to her side. Sammy dragged me through the door way and I blinked in shock.

There were two loud bangs, like the one I heard whenever I left Sammy's park. These ones failed to invoke the usual fear though, which I thought was odd. They were the same noises, so shouldn't I have felt the same blood chilling fear?

What had really surprised me was the scenery. We were on the deck of a massive ship, but the only people in sight were Mama, Sammy and me. Someone sighed off to the side and I turned my head to see who it was.

Jack was a tall man, with shockingly bright red hair and blue eyes. They were bright like Mama's, but much more serious and almost cold...but underneath they were really warm. He had Mama's eyes...Just like Sammy had mine.

He was staring at me with an odd expression...somewhere between curiosity and melancholy. He looked like he wanted a hug.

I didn't stop myself either. I tackled him in a tight hug. I felt him stiffen. He was like a rock to hug though; I could feel the muscles under his clothing, which consisted of a loose white dress shirt, black pants and a long red-brown coat.

A large hand was slowly placed on my back, and another wrapped around me. I smiled at the returned hug.

I could hear Mama laughing cheerfully, and Sammy saying,_** "What did I tell you? I knew she'd hug him."**_

_"Of course she would, what with him wearing that lost puppy look."_

"Hey...I can't help it what my face looks like." The man's voice was deep and from my place, hugging him, it seemed to rumble. I looked up to see him frowning.

"Oh, I know. If you could, you would have changed it." Mama said with a large smile.

"Himawari!" The red-haired man protested, but there was a ghost of a smile on the edges of his mouth.

I slowly began to pull away, and Jack quickly released me, but not before ruffling my hair with his hand.

I suddenly became aware of the rest of the mindscape we were in. There were other layers to the deck, but across from where we were sitting, there was a partially opened brown door with little leaves painted on it in orange and red. I could easily tell it was the door I had come through.

On either side of my door, I saw the two doors that lead to the twins' minds, still only partially painted. To the left the purple striped door, which was to the left of my own door, the chained metal door with the words** 'STAY OUT' **was positioned, a small puddle of water gathering around the bottom. On the other side of my door, and to the right of the red swirling door, the traditional sliding door also sat.

Curious, I looked at some of the other doors near my own. Above my door, there was another brown one, but this one had random golden swirles and ripples that sparkled. It kinda reminded my of sand. If I had to guess, I would say it was Risa-sensei's.

Beside what I guessed to be Risa's door, there was a dark blue door with a small Uchiha fan. At first I thought it was Uncle's, but then I remembered that Dad, Kaito, was an Uchiha too, and it made sense his was so close. Beside his door, there was a traditional door with flowers painted on it, which I guessed was Aunt Mikoto's. On the other side of Risa's mind there was a white door with brown paw prints walking up. I thought it was probably Kiba-kun's mama. Beside this door, there was another white door, with a red toad painted on it. Jiraiya. No doubt about it.

Mama plopped down on the deck, and patted her lap. I skipped over to her with a smile and took my place. Jack sat beside Mama and Sammy sat on her other side, in a little circle.

"Alright, " Mama said, "Its time to get rid of formalities. Jack, this is my daughter Akiko, Aki, this is Jack. He's my version of Sammy."

I stared at the man. He did remind me a lot of Mama. Not in his personality, but the way he felt...not physically, but there was something about him that was just...her. And they shared eyes. Was that why I hugged him for looking so sad?

I looked at Sammy. She was the same as me. Not me...but she felt like me. But...what did that mean? And why were they here?

"Alright...how should I start?" Mama asked, although I wasn't sure if she was asking herself, me, or the other two people in her mind.

**_"The part about...the 'Diani no kikai'?"_ **_Sammy offered with a nervous but hopeful smile._

"Right." Mama said, looking tired, as she looked down to focus on me, "Our family is very old. We've been around since before the Senju and the Uchiha and all of them. The Saisei have always believed in reincarnation, because many of us could remember the life before the one we were born into.

"As time went by, we began to develop techniques that let us go further into these memories, and eventually we discovered that we were not alone in our minds...that there was someone else in our minds." At this, she looked towards Sammy and Jack.

"These people introduced themselves as past lives. Jack is my past life, just like Sammy was yours. Everyone has at least one of their past lives with them. Past lives are there to give us advice when we're alone, and to help us survive...they're what most people call a conscience.

"Even though everyone has one, not many people are aware that there is a separate individual inside them. The people that do know are either Saisei, or what we call the Enlightened. The Enlightened are usually taught by a Saisei, or discover the past life by themselves during meditation, mental breakdown, or if there is an extremely dangerous situation, the past life may reveal themselves."

"What makes us different from the Enlightened?" I asked.

Maybe it was because we were in a mindscape and not in the real world, but I found it a lot easier to understand what Mama was saying, even though she wasn't using simple words, like she did from time to time. Maybe it was because in this mindscape, I was with Sammy, and Sammy was a teenager...so she would know a lot of stuff, wouldn't she? And because she is me, I know this stuff too, right?

"I'm glad you asked...I almost forgot that part," Mama said, and she gave me a sheepish smile, "Only special people are reborn into our family."

"Special how?"

"All of the past-lives reborn into our family passed away protecting someone important to them." Mama said. I almost missed it, but Jack seemed to sigh. He missed someone.

Sammy suddenly reached out and took me from Mama's lap, and put me in her own lap, before she wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tight. She was shaking. I guessed Sammy was still shaken up about her death? Three years didn't seem like a long time...maybe she was still scared?

Still...I felt really proud of her. She died -I died- protecting someone she loved. Isn't that a good way to go? That's how I wanted to go now too.

'Ah...that's weird. I'm three. Toddlers aren't supposed to think about how they want to die.' I thought to myself and I tried not to frown, _'Then again, I'm not a normal three year old, am I? I'm...oh. I'm a nearly-prune-person in a baby body. Huh.'_

Sammy stopped shaking and she snickered softly._** "I'm sorry to tell you but, yes. A young Prune person, very young, but still a prune person."**_

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

There was so much more for me to learn, and so many things were explained to me about my appearance.

One: Saisei often only looked like the parent that matched their own gender...it was why I looked so much like my Mama and not the man who was my biological father. However, we did look a great deal like our past lives as well.

Two: A Saisei's eyes never changed...Mama had Jack's eyes and I had Sammy's. The eyes were the window to the soul, and because we were the same soul, same eyes.

Three: The markings over our eyes matched the hair colour of our past lives. What ever colour our hair was in this life was one of the few things genetics really took an effect in. My hair was orange, although it was getting darker, while Sammy was a brunette. I could safely blame my parents for my hair.

I learned a lot of other things too. Just because Sammy was my past life...that didn't mean I'd actually turn into Sammy in the end. I might end up with a completely different personality. After all, a person is shaped by their was why Mama was so different from Jack.

My hunch that being in the mindscape made me smarter was also correct...the more time I spent here, the more knowledge I was likely to absorb from Sammy.

I felt really lucky. I had someone inside of me, who knew so much more about everything than I did, and they would always be with me...I had an advantage that most other people didn't. I just...really wished there was some way to share it with everyone. Sasuke, Naruto...even Sakura-chan, Itachi-oniisan, Shisui-oniisan...everyone. Wouldn't the world be better if everyone didn't have to repeat mistakes they made in another life?

We left Mama's mindscape, which I nicknamed the 'Eternal Sea'. As Sammy and I left the Eternal Sea, and crossed through my door to the Autumn Park, there was a loud BANG, the same noise I heard when I first left my own mindscape. It was nearly identical to the loud noises I heard when I crossed into the Eternal Sea. But it still scared me more than anything else.

But unlike when I had crossed into mama's mindscape, I knew what it was now. That horrible noise was something called a gunshot. Jack had been 'shot' twice when he died, and Sammy had been hit only once. I didn't know what a gun was...but I knew it was a weapon. Sammy told me a 'bullet' could move at the same speed, if not faster than most ninjas. I guess a bullet was a metal rock or something?

I didn't really understand her explanation. We tried to get Jack to explain it, but he only shook his head and said we wouldn't be seeing any guns in this lifetime, so we shouldn't worry about it.

I spent a few moments looking around the Autumn Park, watching little clips of memories fall to the ground in graceful, twirling dances.

"Sammy...You said something to me about how I was snooping in my sleep? What does that mean?"

Sammy stared at me for a long moment. She looked unsure of herself, and she seemed to be judging something about me with narrowed brown eyes.** _"I can't tell you yet. I'm sorry but...We need to spend a lot more time in here before you're really ready...I'm sorry to tell you this, but the nightmares won't be leaving for a long time...especially not after I tell you."_**

I stared at Sammy in a moment of disappointment...that wasn't fair...I was ready to learn all kinds of stuff, but she still wouldn't tell me? I pouted, and then squealed as Sammy's hands shot out and she gripped my cheeks.

_**"Don't pout! I'll tell you someday! Just be patient...I'll tell you when you're ready!"**_

"Let go of my face!" I protested.

_**"Nope~!" **_Sammy laughed as she continued to pull my cheeks. Eventually she let go. I rubbed my face and tried to glare at her, but the big smile on her face made it hard. She looked really, really happy, and that made me feel really happy too.

**_"Alright...I think it's time you went back to the real world...and to sleep. It's late and little kids like you need all the sleep you can get."_ **Sammy put her hands on her hips and gave me a stern look.

"I'm not little."

Sammy only smiled at me. After a moment, I sighed, but willed myself to get out of my mindscape. Again, the world went negative and then rippled like a puddle that had just been stepped in. The silence was torn apart by that terrible 'gunshot' and a moment later I found myself in my bedroom, with Naruto soundly asleep beside me.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Naruto and I found ourselves being dropped off at Sasuke's house. Mama had been called to the Hokage's office and Dad was off on a mission, so we had to spend the day with Sasuke and Itachi-oniisan, since Aunt Mikoto had to go shopping and Fugaku was a jer- meanie and was talking to clan elders, rather than spending time with his sons.

We didn't see a lot of Ita-oniisan, and it made me really sad. When we did see him, he looked really tired. There were bags under his eyes and the lines on his face, stress lines, were more prominent than ever. I guess it was really had to be in ANBU.

Sasuke flung the door open and immediately dragged us inside. He was really happy today, I guess it was because he got to spend time with Itachi for once. I kinda felt bad that Naruto and I were here, taking his attention off Sasuke.

We entered the sitting room where Itachi was laying on the couch, like he always seemed to be doing. I launched myself at him the moment I was close enough. Of course, because Ita-oniisan was all Nin-nin, he caught me effortlessly.

"Hello Akiko-chan, might I ask why you decided to tackle me?" Ita-oniisan asked, a gentle smile on his face.

I smirked, "No...you may not ask."

"Oh?"

"Yes."

"Then I may have to tickle you."

I stared at him with narrowed eyes, "You wouldn't dare."

"Wouldn't I?" He asked, before his fingers darted to my sides and be began to ruthlessly tickle me. I gave out a startled cry, which quickly morphed into near hysterical laughter.

"N-hahaha-Narut-to! S-Sas-suke! Sa-haha-save m-me-ahahaha!"

"Yes Akiko!" The two boys shouted before they too launched themselves at our older brother. Itachi stopped tickling me, as he needed to free his hands, unless he wanted the two of them to land on him. He used his ninja-ness to catch both of them, before he began tickling them instead of me. I used the distraction they caused to slip out of the mess.

Eventually Itachi stopped tickling them and there was a comfortable silence, before Sasuke and Naruto suddenly regained their energy.

"Did you see that? Huh? Huh? Did ya Sasuke? I jumped way high and Itachi was all like 'Oh no! I gotta catch him before he defeats me with his awesomeness'!"

"Ya right! Itachi is waaaay too cool to think something that lame. He was actually thinking 'Oh god, if I don't catch him, he could really hurt little Akiko, since Naruto is too heavy from not training enough'."

"Who are you calling little!?" I pouted, but was ignored at Naruto's response overpowered me. Still, it looked like Itachi noticed me at least.

"Hey! The only reason I'd be heavy is because I'm solid muscle! I probably have more muscle in my little toe than you do in your whole body!"

"So, Akiko-chan, how has your training been going?" Itachi asked me as I moved to sit beside him on the couch.

"Alright, I guess. I've been trying to learn how to move around without seeing anything...it's kinda hard." I said, while rubbing a bruise on my shin. Itachi followed the movement and sighed when he noticed the mark.

"Perhaps you should have someone there to watch? What about your mother?"

I pouted and shrugged. It was the way I usually would have reacted but...some how it felt wrong. I felt like I was only pretending. Was it because of Sammy? I did feel older now, in a way. And I really, really, really didn't like it.

"Shestilldoesn'tknow?" I said in an uncertain voice, rushing the words out and looking away. He had warned me already about training alone but...I couldn't tell Mama. She needed all the sleep she could get, all the rest. I didn't want her to have to spend more time exerting herself than necessary, which included our training...I didn't want to extend it anymore than it already was.

"Why not?" Itachi asked me. I was silent or a bit, watching as Sasuke and Naruto rolled around on the floor yelling at each other. They were so immature...of course...they were three. They were supposed to be immature. Not everyone was aware of the voice in their heads. I sighed and turned to lock eyes with my older cousin, although he was more an older brother than anything.

"I don't want her to worry."

It wasn't the answer he was expecting...maybe it was more mature a thing for me to say than usual? I didn't really know anymore. It felt like the part of me that was little Akiko had started drifting away. It seemed too fast. I hardly had any time to be Akiko, and already I could feel Sammy's influence. I was scared. I'd only spent a little time in our Mindscape...how much longer until I was all grown up, and I really was a prune-person in a baby-body?

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

I spent more and more time with Mama, Jack and Sammy every night, learning as much as I could, but it still felt like something was missing. Something wasn't being said and it was driving me insane! I would creep up during our conversations and hang there like a dense fog, refusing to be blown away. It I even tried to bring it up,all three of them would change the subject, or say it was late or something like that and kick me out.

Still, with so much of my time being taken up with playing with my brother and our friends, training and learning, it didn't really click in my mind that the days were flying by. Then, when Naruto, Mama and I went to the park, it hit me.

The wind was a bit colder, and the trees were a little less green and some had even started changing colour. The summer flowers stopped blooming and the fall ones started coming out.

I realized that more than a month had gone by, and fall was upon us. September already.

The change in season had me thinking, too deeply to really play. While my blond brother seemed worried, I assured him I was fine, so he went to play with Kiba-kun. I looked for a place where I could sit and relax, and spotted the hill where we had met Shikamaru.

Just peeking over the crest of the hill, I could see the beginnings of a ponytail sticking up. I smiled to myself as I made my way over. From what I had seen of Shikamaru, although it wasn't much...a few visits to the park, here and there...I knew he was quiet, and wouldn't ask any questions, unless I did something strange enough to catch his attention.

At that moment, I didn't need anyone asking questions. I just...needed to think. It was call already. Naruto and I would be turning four. It was great and all..but...If it was September, it meant Mama was one month closer to...

As a Saisei, I knew Death wasn't as big a deal as many made out for it to be. It wasn't a permanent thing, for anyone. As a Saisei, there was even a chance I'd see her again. When she died...if she was born into this world again, the door to her next life would be open for me. I could visit her whenever. And Jack was going to find another life to help with too. There'd be two more people out there that I knew loved me.

When I died, I knew Sammy and I would likely be separated and placed as consciences in the minds of two other people. We'd still be able to talk though. In life, a person makes lots of special bonds, and even in Death those bonds hold on. Saisei...just get early access to the door ways leading to everyone's souls. If the bond was strong enough between souls, the door will always be opened.

I sat down on the hill and stared down at the street below, watching people bustle around, doing their shopping and who knows what else.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Shikamaru open one eye. When he saw it was me, he gave a questioning look, before he let out a deep breath and closed it again.

I guess what ever he wanted to ask was too troublesome.

It was funny how he always said that. It didn't help that Sammy giggled every time he said it. It was a bit odd, but when I asked she only told me she thought it was funny too. I believed what she was saying was true, but knew it wasn't really the answer. If that makes any sense.

I laid back and stared up at the sky, focusing on the rolling clouds, rather than the shortening amount of time I had with my mother in this life, and how easily I could accept it now. Only a few months ago...I was crying. Now I was just...Resigned? I don't even know. Was it even my feelings...or was it Sammy?

"What's the matter?"

Shikamaru's voice nearly made me flinch. I had managed to forget he was there in the short amount of time I had been thinking

"I'm getting old." It wasn't a lie. My birthday was coming up...in October. I was aging mentally too.

He sent me a confused look, "What?"

"My birthday's in October." I said, "I'll be four. I don't wanna be four."

"What's wrong with four?"

"I'll almost be five."

Again, he looked confused, "What's wrong with five?"

At this I paused and put on a fake smile, "It's nothing. I'm just anxious about going into the academy when I'm older."

A lie. I was really excited about the academy. I was worried about being five though, that was true. After all, by the time I was five, I was probably going to be a big sister (Although Naruto was technically younger than me, I still thought of him as a big brother...even if it was just because he was bigger than me.), there was a chance Mama would be dead (If she didn't hold out that long), and I'd have a husband.

Oh yes, don't think I forgot about that. There was no way in hel- There was no way I was going to marry Sasuke, that was for sure. I really wanted to know just what Uncle Fugaku was smoki- thinking. Sure it wasn't a husband yet, but it was a fiance, and I didn't want one. Marriage was gross. I only supported adults getting married. That was fine. They had nothing better to do with their lives.

I, on the other hand, had a lot of stuff to do, like traveling, being kickass, eating every flavour of ramen, making Naruto the Hokage, fighting bad guys, being an awesome big sis to my lovely younger siblings...training them to be kickass, pulling pranks, and Enlightening my friends so they can meet their past selves...And I couldn't do any of that with some guy taking up my time being all needy and crap. He can go make his own sandwich-

_**Alright. Zen, my little friend.**_

_Eheh...got carried away...didn't I?_

_**Bingo.**_

_I love bingo!_

_**No you don't. And stop spacing out, Shika looks confused.**_

I blinked and focused on the world around me, taking in the confused look on Shikamaru's face before he sighed, muttering his typical "Troub'some."

"By the way...Wanna come to a party?"

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Because my fourth birthday was so close to Naruto's, we threw two parties. The first was on my birthday, October 7th. This was a small one, just the four of us. Me, Naruto, Mama and Dad. That day we didn't have any training, we got to go to the best ramen place in the world for dinner, then we went home, ate cake and opened presents.

I got a big stuffed Tanuki from Kai- Dad. I named him Shu-kun. Sammy laughed when I named it. I don't really know why, but I liked the name. Now Kyo-kun had a friend. But anyways, when I mean big, I really meant MASSIVE! The stuffy was taller than I was! It was like...An Akiko and a half tall!

Dad gave Naruto a gift too. He gave my brother a prank kit, filled with al kinds of fun things. Water balloons, stink bombs, smoke bombs, itching powder, super glue, an assortment of coloured feathers and a lot of glitter. When Naruto saw it, I could see this glint in his eyes. it just promised someone *cough*Uncle Fugaku*cough* would be getting pranked. And soon!

Mama's gift for me was a small puppet, with no real features. He was a simple, wooden man. I knew she didn't want me to become a puppeteer, because she thought I was going to look for my 'real' dad, so I was really surprised she was giving me one, even if it was only for beginners. Maybe she trusted Sammy to keep me from trouble?

She got Naruto a stuffed blue toad, which was about the same size as Shu-kun. He had trouble naming him, so he asked me what I thought we should call him. I couldn't really think of what to call him either, and Sammy had no suggestions, so we ended up just calling him Ao.

Naruto gave me a handful of flowers, which looked kinda like some of the ones growing in the flowerbed outside, but I still liked them a lot. It wasn't everyday a boy gave me flowers. And they were really pretty too! All kinds of colours, but there were a lot of orange ones. Not that orange isn't a great colour and all but - Never mind.

In return for the flowers, I gave Naruto an orange ball, so we could play games, and a strange looking sleeping cap. It was a rodent of some kind...I'm not sure, but it was cute! And Naruto loved it. I think. He wore it for the rest of the day, and all through the night. It kinda made me wanna get one for myself, but I'd have to wait for another time.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

Naruto's birthday was on the tenth, and for that one, we invited all kinds of people to our house. We couldn't go out that day, because a lot of people didn't like Naruto, and for some reason, they all knew when his birthday was...it was kinda weird. Stalkers, the lot of them.

Before the party, we had gone with mama to go grab a few more things,but as soon as we stepped out, people were shouting bad words at my brother and calling him mean names. Even my clan, the Uchiha were treating him badly. They blamed im for something, saying it was his fault they were hated.

I didn't think we were hated...people never said anything cruel to me, or stare at me, or treat me any differently from a normal kid. I'd never seen anyone hate an Uchiha...not like they hated Naruto. It wasn't fair how they were treating him like this...why were they doing this?

And what could Naruto have done to deserve this? How could it be his fault?

I just didn't understand adults.

Mama kept most of the people away, openly threatening and getting into fist fights, like she wasn't sick at all. Eventually we got to the store, but the owner wouldn't let Naruto in, even after we threatened him, so Naruto and I wandered to the Hokage tower, which was really close by to visit Jiji.

The secretary sneered for a moment before she noticed my glare and frowned at me. We left her in the lobby and thumped our way up the stairs to Jiji's office. The door was open and he was alone, so we charged in, yelling "JIJI!" at the top of our lungs. It was fun.

Jiji didn't seem at all surprised to see us, which was slightly disappointing, but it didn't matter all that much. Naruto climbed onto the old man's lap and began exciteded telling him all about the party happening that day and the small party we had a few days ago. He bragged about his presents. I didn't talk so much with Jiji, but that was just because I wasn't used to seeing him as 'Jiji' yet. He was still 'Hokage-sama', ya know?

Still, Jiji seemed to notice how quiet I was, so he was always trying to make me talk whenever we visited him.

"Akiko, are you excited for the party later?"

I nodded cheerfully, "Yup! There'll be cake, and all kinds of good food. Our friends and family will all come and we'll play games and do all sorts of fun things! And presents. I like those."

"Yeah!" Naruto chipped in, "And our friends from the park are gonna come! Shikamaru, Kiba...Sakura-chan might be able to come..."

Sakura-chan being there was a slim possiblilty, if she snuck away to visit. We really hoped so. We weren't sure who else would be coming, but Mama was asking a lot of her friends who had kids if they wanted to come, so here were likely to be a bunch of kids.

"And Itachi-oniisan and Shisui-niisan and Sasuke-kun will be there..." I added, smiling. They were both soooooo busy with ninja stuff. I wondered if it would be like that for the twins when they were our age...would Naruto, Sasuke and I be off being ninja and leave them to wonder around like we did?

I hoped not. I didn't want to be in ANBU so soon either. I heard a lot of bad things happened on ANBU missions, and sometimes...sometimes people didn't come back the same as they left. I wouldn't do that until the twins were kickass. That, I knew for sure.

Jiji smiled happily, "I'll have to stop by and see how it goes."

Naruto and I cheered happily, high-fiving each other. This would be the best party ever. After all...not many kids got the Hokage to come for their birthdays~! It was like...A ninja celebrity guest.

We talked for a while longer, until Mama popped her head in the door, smiling brightly, "I finished shopping."

My brother and I scrabbled off the Hokage and went towards the door, happily telling Mama that Jiji would be coming to join the party later. I stopped suddenly and glanced back at the old man.

_**You know...he looks stressed.**_

_He does._

_**I wonder...do you think we should help him?**_

_How?_

_**Shadow Clones, my little friend.**_

I blinked, before smiling. The Hokage was giving me an odd, thoughtful look, like he was trying to figure out what I was thinking. I skipped back to his desk and pointed at the stack of papers in front of him.

"You know Jiji, I bet you could finish that a lot quicker if you had four hands. Or something. Hey, isn't there a jutsu thingy that lets you make more of yourself? Oh...but those are only illusions, right? Too bad there aren't solid ones...are there?"

He stared at me, his eyes shifting to the papers before looking at me with wide eyes. He smiled again and ruffled my hair.

"Thank you Akiko-chan, you've given me a wonderful idea."

I giggled and offered him my own version of Naruto's Sunshine Grin, "No problem, Jiji."

Then I darted across the room to Mama and we left, waving goodbye to the old man.

* * *

*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*!~-_-~!*

* * *

The party was amazing! Shikamaru and Kiba-kun came, along with their parents, and they brought some friends of theirs, who had kids. There was a blond girl named Ino, she was from the Yamanaka clan, and Choji with was from the Akimichi clan. They were both clan heirs...and I really felt bad for them. Then again, I was a clan heir too. Ugh. Responsibilities.

Sakura-chan did show up, but she only stayed for about half an hour, before she had to go before her mom went to the park she said she was playing at. It was enough time to introduce her to everyone else though. Ino seemed to take a liking to her, although the blond was very loud, compared to Sakura-chan.

Besides them, a few other kids came. One was named Shino, and he came from the Aburame clan. Mama was apparently good friends with his father...which I found questionable, because he seemed a bit reserved compared to her.

Another was an adorable girl named Hinata. She was the Heiress of the Hyuuga clan. She was even shyer than Sakura-chan, which really worried us. She did seem to open up a little when her mom was with her. They seemed very close.

I took it they were ony here because all kinds of other heirs and heiresses were here, and it would look bad if the Hyuuga weren't invited, or didn't show up.

An hour or so into the party, Jiji showed up, looking incredibly happy.

There was gifts and food and games and it was a great party. All in all...I thought it was a complete success. Naruto and I had never had so many people happy for us before. It was a strange experience. And I promised myself times like these would continue.

* * *

_**So, here is the ridiculously long awaited chapter. I'm sorry about the long wait. I've been having a little trouble gathering up the will to work on this. I've got a little bit of writer's block...it didn't help that there were exams to work on and once summer break started my friends conspired to kidnap me every two or three days. I'm really sorry it took so long.**_

_**I'm pretty sure this is the longest chapter I've written for this story. We got to meet 'Itachi' AKA Jack, who was an OC in my One Piece fic that died in the very first chapter. I really liked him though, so I thought I'd bring him back to life, in a manner of speaking. There was a lot of talk about what exactly goes on in the Saisei family, but I didn't want to get into too much detail, or really say too much. If there are any questions, feel free to PM me, or ask in your reviews. I almost always respond (sometimes something slips past me and I don't notice until a month's gone by...). This chapter was really more of a time skip type thing than anything. We basically jumped over September, although there was a little interaction between Aki and Shika. Naruto and Akiko are now four, and it looks like Himawari's time is drawing to a close, but not just yet. I plan to get a little more time with her out before then.**_

_**If anyone missed the poll results I put up temporarily, the winner if Shikamaru~! In second place we have the lovely Panda-chan, Gaara! And in third we have Neji.**_

_**This aside, I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed so far. I'd list everyone that has since the previous chapter, like I usually do, but I've gotten so many reviews since then, and as bad as it is...I can't remember when I posted the last chapter either...but yeah! Thank you all sooo much~! You're all fabulous.**_

_**Please review and tell me what you think!**_


	17. Not An Update! 1000 APOLOGIES

I'm so, so sorry to say that this is not the update you were looking for. BUT FEAR NOT! I'm not quitting this fic!

I'm here to tell you that Forever Family will be rewritten under the title _**Forever Tied**_.

I decided a rewrite was in order because Akiko was getting a little out of control. I was trying to rein in her potential for Mary Sue, but I didn't want it to be out of the character I had developed for her. Clearly, it wasn't working. I thought maybe i could fix things after the birth of the twins, or the death of Himawari or the Clan, but I just couldn't...see it. SO! For _**Forever Tied**_, little Akiko is going through a bit of a transformation. And when I say a bit, I mean a lot. Some things will stay the same, like her heritage, Sammy, and her outward appearance, but other things...big changes are coming.

I hope to keep her with Shika, but I may hold a new poll, to see if you guys still want them together after the changes to Akiko's character.

As I said before, I'm very sorry that this is not an update, and I'm sorry if anyone doesn't like the changes I will be putting in the rewrite.


End file.
